COVINGTON, Ga. – For the third consecutive year, the Eastside Lady Eagles have claimed the softball Newton Cup, as they defeated Alcovy and Newton 14-0 and 4-0, respectively.

The annual matchup between county rivals took place on Saturday, which was rescheduled from a few weeks prior due to inclement weather. The action began swiftly, as the Eastside Lady Eagles comfortably handled the Alcovy Lady Tigers 14-0 in Game 1.

The action was far more contested in Game 2, as the Newton Lady Rams looked to unseat one of the top teams in the entire country. But a pitching clinic from Kylee Lawrence led the Lady Eagles to the 4-0 victory to claim the trophy.

Newton and Alcovy faced off in the third game of the day with pride on the line. The Lady Tigers came to play as they stood toe-to-toe with Newton throughout the contest. But it was a walk off single by Janiyah Henderson that gave the Rams the winning run needed in the bottom of the seventh inning to secure the win.

Eva Davis throws no-hitter to secure run-ruled Game 1 victory

The Lady Eagles got off to a blistering start, thanks to two strikeouts from pitcher Eva Davis. The reigning All-Cov News Softball MVP and Stetson commit continued her two-way presence with a two-run double. Paired with another RBI from freshman standout Jayah Johnson, the Lady Eagles ended the first inning 3-0.

A frenzy of scoring continued for Eastside in the second inning, as hits from Savanna Griffin, Kylee Lawrence and Ansley Hartman allowed the Eagles to increase their lead to 11-0 in the bottom of the second.

The major positive from Game 1 for Alcovy came in the third inning, as they stopped the Lady Eagles from scoring any runs.

But unfortunately for the Lady Tigers, the scoring frenzy resumed shortly after the beginning of the bottom of the fourth inning, as a three-run RBI double from Bryleigh Loggins sealed Game 1.

Davis finished the game with eight strikeouts with no hits allowed. Loggins led the team in RBI’s with three.

Kylee Lawrence throws 15 strikeouts to lead Lady Eagles to Newton Cup

The Lady Eagles got on the board first with Lily Stowe stealing home on a wild pitch in the top of the first inning. 

This eventually led to a pitching battle between Memphis commit Kylee Lawrence and Lady Rams pitcher Kassidy Scott. Lawrence swept the inning with three strikeouts, while Scott accounted for two of her own.

The scoring drought would not last long as the Lady Eagles would add two more runs to make it 3-0 due to some defensive errors by Newton. Lawrence’s defensive clinic continued with three more strikeouts, ending the third inning.

But it was not all lost for Newton, as the Lady Rams would build momentum thanks to a double from Albany State commit Aaliyah Parsons. While Parsons would get to third base, she was tagged out soon after by Georgia Tech commit Donee Morain in her pursuit to steal home.

This would allow the Lady Eagles to regain control of the game, as Griffin produced an RBI double to extend the lead to 4-0.

Following yet another three-strikeout frame from Lawrence, the Lady Eagles would struggle at the batter’s box, not producing another hit for the remainder of the game.

But Lawrence’s continued pitching frenzy allowed the Lady Eagles to roll onto their 14th victory of the season and a third consecutive Newton Cup trophy.

Lawrence finished with an astounding 15 strikeouts with only one allowed hit. Scott also accounted for eight strikeouts for the Lady Rams.

Newton walks off Alcovy in bottom of seventh inning

Both squads looked to brush off losses from earlier in the day after the Newton Cup was decided. Newton would ultimately strike first as a fly out sacrifice by Leilani Garcia allowed Scott to score.

After a no-run second inning, the Lady Tigers would find paydirt with a two-run double by Olivia Tomberlin to give Alcovy its first lead of the day.

The Lady Rams would find their groove once again in the bottom of the fourth inning with hits from Parsons and Londyn Parks. A sacrifice pop out by London Treadwell allowed Parsons to score to tie the game at 2-2.

Newton added another run at the bottom of the fifth inning with a single RBI from Joy Files. Garcia singled to give the Lady Rams a 4-2 lead.

However, the Lady Tigers began to roar back in the top of the sixth. A fly ball from Aryanna Moore led to a defensive error, allowing Alcovy to pick up a run. On the next play, a ground ball from Kamilah James led to another Newton error and a second Alcovy score to tie the game at 4-4.

Newton would reclaim control at the bottom of the sixth after an Alcovy error gave the Lady Rams a 5-4 lead.

The Lady Tigers would not be deterred as two more errors from Newton led to another Lady Tiger score to tie the game at 5-5.

After Alcovy failed to score any more runs, the game was in the hands of Newton in the bottom of the seventh. 

Garcia struck first with a double on the first play. Then, a ground ball by Londyn Parks stood after another Alcovy error.

On the next play, it was Henderson who nailed a ground ball single RBI that would allow pinch runner Ayjah Dooley – who was in place of Garcia – to advance to home plate for the walk off victory.

What’s next

At 14-0, the Lady Eagles have cemented themselves as not only one of the top teams in the state, but in the entire country. As of Monday, MaxPreps had the Lady Eagles ranked at No. 3 in Georgia and No. 7 in the country. They face off against Lakeside on Monday  and travel to Seckinger Wednesday.

The Lady Rams are at 8-7, and are fighting for a spot in the postseason. They are set to face off against Heritage and Archer on Monday and Tuesday, respectively.

The Lady Tigers now sit at 1-14 on the season. Alcovy is likely not a postseason contender, but will look to build off of the momentum they gathered against Newton on Saturday. They are set to face Southwest DeKalb and Loganville, on Monday and Tuesday, respectively. After the back-to-back slate, the Lady Tigers will face Apalachee on the road.