Tough and determined AHN softball girls kept their focus – and came out on top by winning Districts Thursday night, April 18.  Their opponent Tampa Catholic brought in four pitchers, while AHN pitcher Alex Gerecke  had to stand strong on the mound all night. Pitchers Shannon Taylor and Julia Schifino were sidelined with injuries.

The Academy girls jumped on TC fast, scoring four runs in the first inning and standing firm on defense. Pitcher Alexandra Gerecke kept the TC hitters honest, and the defense backed her up and made the plays.

The game was was an offensive battle with the teams going back and forth all night. The Tampa Catholic squad would score, and then Academy would rally.

Tampa Catholic mounted several comebacks in the game- the biggest coming in the seventh inning to tie the game up 7-7. Julissa Benitez drove in the tying run with two outs and two strikes.

The RBI sent the two teams into extra innings, and the intensity in the air rose to a maximum for the night. With the crowd on its feet, Janelle Enriquez scored on Ashton Hill’s base hit, claiming the lead in the eighth inning.

Caroline Sutton and Christina Gerecke sealed the deal with an RBI each at the end of the inning, posting a final score of 12-9.

Tampa Catholic fought back in the bottom of the inning, smashing four hits and scoring two runs but could not recover from the deficit.

Academy now moves on to face regional competition next Thursday night, April 25.