COVINGTON, Georgia – The Eastside Lady Eagles defended the Newton Cup and their home court with an 11-3 victory over the Newton Lady Rams on Diamond Day to once again capture the trophy.

After defeating the Alcovy Lady Tigers in the second game on Diamond Day, Eastside had a chance to secure the Newton Cup with a win over Newton in the third and final game of the day.

While winning the Newton Cup is a major accomplishment in itself, defending the title on home soil was a deciding factor for the Lady Eagles, according to head coach Heather Wood.

“We take a lot of pride in these rivalry games,” Wood said. “We want to make sure we represent our school. These games mean a lot to our community, our program and our team spirit – I think that showed today. It was a great feeling to win last year and we just wanted to continue that this year.”

After a quick turnaround after game two, the Lady Eagles forced a one-two-three inning from Newton to open the contest.

When the Lady Eagles came to bat, they were able to load the bases with just one out, allowing Savanna Griffin to score the first run of the game with a sacrifice fly.

By the end of the second inning, Eastside’s lead had increased to seven points.

After a hit-by-pitch and a single, Allie Vaughn scored both runs with a double. Senior Anslee Saunchegraw walked in the next at-bat, allowing Eva Davis and Avery Jewell to score a total of three runs with two RBI doubles.

Before the inning could end, Eastside scored another run on an infield error by the Lady Rams, increasing the lead to 7-0.

Things didn’t go well for Newton in the next half-inning, as Vaughn struck out the first two batters. However, a single by Zaikerryia Smith allowed Tiara Moody to score the Lady Rams’ first run of the game with a single to center field.

Moody’s RBI hit cut the Lady Eagles’ lead to 7-1. But Eastside scored again in the next half-inning.

A leadoff double finally allowed Saunchegraw to score the run with an RBI single. Eastside scored runs in the next two at-bats with a sacrifice fly by Davis and an RBI ground out by Jewell.

Jewell’s RBI groundout gave the Lady Eagles a 10-1 lead.

In the next inning for Eastside, the team scored another run on an RBI groundout – this time by Alyssa Hartman.

The Lady Rams’ final two runs came on an RBI groundout and a run-scoring single in the fourth and fifth innings, respectively.

With a runner on first base and two outs in the fifth inning, Vaughn forced the flyout for the final out of the game and Eastside won 11-3 thanks to the run rule.

With this victory, the Eastside Eagles won the Newton Cup on the softball field for the second time in a row.

Vaughn started the game for the Lady Eagles and pitched the entire five innings. In five innings, she struck out four batters and allowed two earned runs on six hits.

On a day when Eastside and Wood were without two of their best players – Donee Moraina and Kylee Lawrence – the Lady Eagles head coach was pleased with her team’s efforts in defending the trophy.

“I think the players we had to play in their place stepped up,” Wood said. “We had to change our lineup a little bit and change our defense as well. It just shows how solid our team is and how much depth we have here. Those players can step in and step up at any time. I think it shows how strong our team is that we have players that can step in and contribute right away.”

In the third game, Davis and Cadence McCollough each had two hits. Jewell led the team with three RBIs against the Lady Rams.

The win for Eastside puts the team at 6-0 on the year, the team’s best start since the 2014-15 season, when the Lady Eagles won their first eight games.

Having coached several teams heading to Columbus, Wood explained why she believes this year’s team can be the best of all.

“From one through nine, it’s one of the strongest lineups I’ve ever had,” Wood said. “I’ve had teams in the past where our top four batters were really good or we had a dominant pitcher. But overall, this was the most talented and overall one of the best teams I’ve had the privilege of coaching.”

“I’ve coached a lot of great players and had a lot of good teams, but when you look at it closely, the bottom of our rankings contributes just as much as the top. I think that will really make a difference this year and hopefully help us have a run in October.”

For the Lady Rams, Smith and Moody were the ones who led the way on offense, scoring two goals each.

Following the win, the Lady Eagles will travel to the group’s second Region 8-AAAA game of the season. Eastside will play Madison County on Tuesday, August 27 at 6:30 p.m.

The Lady Rams will look to rebound from two losses on Diamond Day when they face Region 4-AAAAAA foe the Heritage Patriots at home on Monday, August 26.