Corinth Holders softball forces G3 against Providence in 8A series

GREENSBORO, N.C. — Attention to detail and plate adjustments have brought the Pirates back in the 8A softball state championship series.

The Pirates battled back from a 2-1 loss in game one to take down the Panthers in game two of the best-of-three series.

Corinth Holders went with a different starting pitcher in game two, and Eli McKenzie set the tone early. The Pirates' senior worked around an infield single by Ella Lamprey to get out of the opening inning unscathed.

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Similarly, Providence went with a different arm as sophomore Mattingly Amisano started the contest. After a walk drawn by Ava Marks, Savannah Goddard notched the opening hit of the day for the Pirates.

Following a groundout that advanced both runners, freshman Fiona Stephenson got the scoring started with an RBI single up the middle. A groundout gave the Panthers a second out, but a throwing error on a pick-off attempt allowed both Goddard and Stephenson to score, making it 3-0 Pirates.

Casey Tomljanovic got on base after a fielding error by the Pirates, but catcher Gracie Ciron picked her off first base to empty the bases. Then, McKenzie completed the top of the second with a strikeout to keep the good times going for the eastern regional champions.

• View Photos: Corinth Holders vs. Providence, Game 2 (May 28, 2026). HSOT Insiders can download championship photos for free. Here's how.

An infield single by Marks in the bottom of the second made significant history. An infield single gave the Memphis commit her 70th hit of the season to break the NCHSAA single-season hit record.

Brittany Henry (Murphy, 2008) and Stephanie Jones (Owen, 2011) each had 69 hits in those respective campaigns.

A Ciron double down the left field line set up Marks to get her 71st hit of the year, an RBI infield single in the bottom of the fourth to extend the Pirates' lead. Add an RBI groundout by Lauren Sizemore, and the advantage grew to 5-0.

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Tomljanovic and Riley Wisecarver notched back-to-back singles, giving the Panthers their biggest chance at getting on the board. However, Ciron saved the shutout by tagging out a Panthers runner at the plate, and McKenzie recorded the final two outs to get out of the jam.

Then, the Pirates continued to build their lead as a Morgan Reason RBI single gave them more insurance in the bottom of the fifth. Sizemore and Stephenson both reached on an error with the bases loaded as they increased their advantage to 8-0.

McKenzie stepped back into the circle and preserved the shutout with back-to-back 1-2-3 innings to close game two.

Game three of the 8A softball state championship series will begin on Thursday evening at UNC Greensboro.

Box Score

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