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The Upson-Lee Lady Knights softball team squared off with Griffin and Spalding earlier this week in two crucial Region 4 contests. With a couple of victories, the Lady Knights could have given themselves a chance to capture a top five seed in next week’s Region 4 tournament, in which all 11 teams in the region will participate.

However, a loss to Griffin on Tuesday, and a loss to Spalding on Wednesday, has the Lady Knights fighting for a six, seven, or eight seed. The Lady Knights, who are 3-6 in region play (8-10 overall) suffered a tough 10-6 loss to the Lady Bears from Griffin on Tuesday.

The Lady Knights jumped out to an early 3-2 lead in the bottom of the first inning, with the help of a two RBi single from Demeshia Russell, and a fielding error from Griffin. Rachel Bridges, Haley Self, and Russell all came home to score in the inning.

In the second inning, the Lady Knights added two more runs to the board with three hits in a row from Alexis Pollard, Darbi Callaway, and Rachel Bridges. Callaway and Bridges each recorded RBI in the inning, giving the Lady Knights a 5-2 lead.

With a three-run lead in the third inning, the Lady Knights gave up three runs, two coming off the bat of Griffin catcher Amani Durant, who blasted a two-run homer over the fence.

The Lady Knights answered with a single run in the bottom of the third to retake the lead 6-5. Pollard again singled up the middle, and later stole second base. Once again it was Bridges who came through in the clutch for the Lady Knights with a RBI double to left center field, giving Upson-Lee a 6-5 lead.

In the fourth inning, Griffin answered again, this time taking the lead for good. Once again it was the Lady Bears’ Durant who did the damage. After hitting a two-run homer in the third inning, Durant blasted another two-run homer in the fourth inning. The Lady Bears scored four times in the inning, sealing their 10-6 victory.

Rachel Bridges, Demeshia Russell, and Alexis Pollard all connected on three hits for Upson-Lee. Haley Self finished with two hits, while Darbi Callaway, Chasity Holliman, and Hannah Watson each chipped in with one hit in the defeat.

After a tough loss to Griffin on Tuesday, the Lady Knights welcomed the Lady Jaguars from Spalding, and it seemed as if the Lady Knights were still feeling the effects of the Griffin game the day before.

Spalding jumped out to a 7-0 lead in the top of the first inning, with a little help from the Lady Knights. Upson-Lee committed four errors in the inning, finding themselves in a deep hole early in the contest.

Upson-Lee added runs in the next three innings, but the damage from the first inning was done, ad Spalding cruised to a 14-7 victory over the Lady Knights. Rachel Bridges stayed hot in the contest, adding three more hits from the lead off spot in the order.

The Lady Knights traveled to face Dutchtown Thursday evening in their final regular season game of 2012. The Lady Knights will begin play on Monday in the Region 4 Tournament, which will take place in McDonough.