The script for Emma Leath to exit Cavalier Park could not have played out any better if Aaron Sorkin penned it himself. Leath was honored before the game, alongside fellow Senior Tennis player Jabin Talley and then she led Carroll County (17-3, 10-2) to the outright Three Rivers District Championship by defeating Radford 9-1 Tuesday night.

Leath recorded 11 strikeouts, pushing her career total up to 713 while scattering seven hits as she finished the game for the 20th straight time for the Cavaliers.

Head Coach Rick Nester started eight players that were either Freshman or Sophomores with three more out do to recent injuries. Short stop Addie Greene is rehabbing from an ankle sprain suffered last week and Nester plugged in another Freshman Kenzey McMillian into her spot in the starting lineup.

To call this team young is doing injustice to the word young. That brings us back to Leath and her fellow Senior, Katherine Lindamood. The fact that Leath pitched so effectively isn’t Breaking News as she has made a career of it but against the Bobcats she went full on Beast Mode at the plate.

Both teams went down in order for the first two plus innings but that changed when Brooke Webb led off the bottom of the third by getting hit by a pitch. Madison Coleman bunted her over to second ahead of a walk to Laynie-Jo Leonard. Holly Miller reached base on a fielders choice and promptly stole second base, bringing Leath to the plate with an opportunity to help her own cause.

Leath laced a 2 run single to plate both Coleman and Miller. Coleman reached on a walk to lead off the fifth inning and it was Leonard that laid down the perfect sacrifice bunt to put Coleman in scoring position. One out later the 5’1 Leath laced a RBI single to push the lead out to 3-0.

In the top of the sixth inning Leath found herself in a rare bases loaded jam with only one out. The next batter popped out to Emma Harman at second base, bringing Kyra Rollins to the plate as the go ahead run.

Rollins timed up a pitch and sent a rocket 🚀 to the deepest part of the ballpark. Miller combined a great jump on the ball and her blazing speed to make the catch just short of the fence. The loud out ended the threat and in the bottom of the inning CCHS broke the game open with a six run rally.

Carlie Beamer pinch hit during the rally and picked up a RBI with a ground out. Leath added a third single to push her RBI total up to five for the night. Harman capped the frame with a RBI single.

” I am so proud of this group of young ladies, they give us their best every night,” said Nester. ” In regards to what Emma Leath has meant to our program is close to undescribable. She has led us both on and off the diamond.”

Showing respect to assistant Coach Jeff Tobler by choosing him to be her catcher for the Ceremonial First Pitch started the evening. Then there was 11 more strikeouts and victory #61. Don’t forget the career high five RBI’S.

Leath will have an encore performance this Friday night when the Lady Cavs welcome Lord Botetourt to The Hill for the Regional tournament opener for both teams.

First pitch is set for 6pm.

Carroll County softball edged Pulaski County early in the season up at Dublin but wasn’t as fortunate Monday night at Cavalier Park as the Cougars picked up key hits in five straight innings to earn an 8-2 Non-District victory.

CCHS (15-3) started out the game strong as Holly Miller picked up the first of her three base hits and eventually scored the games first run when Katherine Lindamood was issued a bases loaded walk. The Lady Cavaliers did plate one run in the rally but left the bases loaded as Laken Greever struck out the side.

Carroll County doubled up their lead in the bottom of the second inning when Miller reached on a single with two outs. The sophomore promptly stole second base and came around to score on a RBI single from Emma Leath.

Following the Leath single, Greever would settle down and limit the Lady Cavaliers to just three hits over the final five innings. The streak of consecutive batters retired reached 14 and was matched by the 14 strike outs.

Leath stranded three base runners over the first two innings but the Cougars played small ball to scratch out their first run in the top of the third inning. Sara Ritter singled for the first of her three base hits and was bunted to second before stealing third base. Greever helped her own cause with a RBI single to make the score 2-1.

Morgan Vest followed with a double to give the visitors two runners in scoring position before Leath stopped the potential big inning with a strike out and a foul out.

Vest and Ritter each finished the contest with three base hits for the Cougars while seven different players scored the eight runs and six different players collected the RBI’S.

The top four in the Lady Cavalier line-up finished 7 of 15, led by Miller with three hits and Leath with two singles but Greever held the rest of the order to 0-14 on the night.

Leath finished the night with seven strikeouts and now sits just three shy of tying the School record of 694 held by Sydney Nester. Four more in her next game will create a new mark of 695.

Despite the setback, Carroll County still controls its own destiny in regards to the Three Rivers District regular season championship. CCHS sits at 8-2 with home games with Radford (2-9) and James River (2-9) remaining while Patrick County is 8-3 with one game to play versus Floyd County (5-6).

Alleghany has dropped three straight and finished in a tie for third with Glenvar at 7-5.

Carroll County holds the tiebreaker with Patrick County after sweeping the season series which allows the Lady Cavaliers to host the District Championship game with one more victory.

Mother Nature might play a role in when the games are going to be played. The schedule as of now is to host Radford on Tuesday and James River on Thursday, weather permitting.

Carroll County Softball has planned a pre-game ceremony before the Radford contest to honor the four Seniors who are set to graduate 🎓 holding school records. Leath, pitching victories, Jabin Talley with Tennis victories, Ashlyn Newman with Soccer career goals and Alyssa Ervin with Basketball career points at 2,111.