Sam Houston advances to State Championship, Vinton falls in Semi-Finals

Lake Charles, LA (KPLC) - We started with 27 Southwest Louisiana softball teams in the LHSAA State Playoffs, but as the rounds progressed, just two teams advanced to the Semi-Finals in Sulphur, the third-seeded Sam Houston Lady Broncos in the Non-Select Division I bracket, and the eighth-seeded Vinton Lady Lions in the Non-Select Division IV bracket.

Sam Houston advanced after receiving a Bi-District round bye, the beating 19th-seeded Haughton 14-1 in the Regional round, and sixth-seeded Walker 4-1 in the Quarterfinals, and with it, the Lady Broncos advanced to Sulphur for a Semi-Final showdown with second-seeded Live Oak.

In the Semi-Finals, Sam Houston got on the board first as Jolie Dore hit a solo home run in the second inning that hit the top of the wall, and fell over to put the Lady Broncos up 1-0. Sam Houston added on to their lead, and then in the top of the seventh senior Lexi Dibbley added an insurance run with a home run of her own to left field, and then she took the circle and put the game to bed as Sam Houston advanced to the Non-Select Division I State Championship game on Saturday.

Sam Houston’s opponent in the State Championship game is top-seeded St. Amant who got to the State Title game after receiving a bye, beating 17th-seeded Ponchatoula 7-0 in the Regional round, eighth-seeded Northshore 11-2 in the quarterfinals, and fourth-seeded West Monroe 13-1 in the Semi-Finals.

The Non-Select Division I State Championship game is set for Saturday, April 29th at 3:00 at the North Frasch Softball Complex Field 13.

As for Vinton, the Lady Lions were playing in the State Semi-Finals for the first time in school history, after winning their first playoff game in school history as well. Fast forward two weeks, and the Lady Lions rattled off two more wins, putting them just one game away from the State Championship game.

Unfortunately for Vinton, they ran into a tough opponent in fourth-seeded French Settlement. French Settlement controlled the Semi-Final matchup from the get-go as they wound up beating Vinton 15-0 in just three innings.

With the win, French Settlement advanced to the Non-Select Division IV Championship game where they will play second-seeded Montgomery on Saturday, April 29th, at noon at North Frasch Softball Complex’s Field 13.

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