Lafayette softball sweeps Lake Cormorant, to face Germantown in quarterfinals

Published 10:59 am Wednesday, April 24, 2019

The Lafayette Commodores are on to 5A state playoff quarterfinals.

Defeating the Lake Cormorant Gators 13-10 on the road Monday, the Commodores returned home on Tuesday night to complete the sweep. The 9-3 win on Tuesday advances Lafayette to their first quarterfinal appearance since the move to 5A and a second-straight playoff meeting with Germantown.

Small ball was the story of the day for the Commodores. Stringing together singles to the win, Madisyn Cobbs got Lafayette on the board early with a first-inning double to score the opening run.

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Cobbs also pitched really well for Lafayette on the night. Holding the Gators scoreless through the opening three innings, she went the whole seven innings for the Commodores in the win, allowing just three runs.

“She was doing a really good job of hitting her spots on the mound. The change of speed was good for her,” said head coach Katie Jenkins. “She was pitching away from them and then bringing it back in with the screw ball.”

There was really no big inning for Lafayette offensively – just a lot of runs coming at different times. They tagged on three runs in the third, two in the fourth, two in the fifth and one more in the sixth inning.

Coming through offensively for the Commodores was Madisyn Cobbs, who hit another big hit later in the game, Mariah Holland and Julianna Ingram. Ingram went three for four hitting on the night

“We just played well overall. We came out swinging and did our business,” Jenkins said. “We played small ball and came up with some big hits with runners on.”

It’s what every coach wants, to be playing their best ball when you’re in the heat of the playoffs. Getting that first round bye from winning the division is a double edge sword – you get your rest, but you can also come out rusty. Thankfully for the Commodores, they were able to avoid the rust.

“We just needed some rest. The way the division ended was stressful and came down to the wire,” Jenkins said. “There were some hard games played in there. They appreciated the rest and they needed it.”

Lafayette has seen their next opponent before, and in similar circumstances. Germantown bounced the Commodores form the playoffs last year with two 12-2 and 6-3 wins. Losses non-withstanding, the experience having played a similar opponent in a similar spot can only help Lafayette.

“You’re not as anxious about playing someone you’ve never played before and you don’t know anything about,” Jenkins said. “Having seen somebody before, knowledge helps there.”

Despite playing in the playoffs last season, Lafayette and Germantown have not played this year. They also have no common opponents on the season. Game one of the quarterfinal series will be Friday at Germantown, with game two at Lafayette on Saturday.