GUYTON — The Buford girls softball team advanced to the Class 6A semifinals with a 10-1 thumping of South Effingham in the two teams' deciding Game 3, quarterfinals matchup.
Buford won the series 2-1. The Lady Wolves won the first game 4-2 but dropped a 5-3 decision in 10 innings in Game 2.
The Lady Wolves move on to Friday's Final 4 in Columbus at the Olympic Softball Complex. They next will take on Lassiter in the first game of a double-elimination tournament that will conclude on Saturday.
On Tuesday, Commerce advanced to its second consecutive Final 4 after knocking off Lanier County 10-3 in the deciding third game of the two teams' Class A Public quarterfinals series.
Meanwhile, there will be a new Class 2A state champion as Banks County, the defending champs, were swept out in the quarterfinals by Vidalia. And in Class 6A, Buford split its doubleheader with South Effingham.
For Commerce, the Lady Tigers broke a scoreless tie with four runs in the top of the third inning. The Lady Bulldogs answered with three runs in the bottom of the third but Commerce pulled away in the late innings. The Lady Tigers scored once in the fifth, three in the sixth, and two more in the seventh to blow the game open.
Carson Hobbs got the win in the circle for Commerce going the distance while allowing three runs on three hits and striking out three.
Jaden Benefield took the loss for Lanier County. Benefield went 2 1/3 innings giving up four runs on six hits.
Hobbs also provided the big blow with a grand slam home run in the third. That sparked a 13-hit Commerce attack as Maggie Mullis, Gabbie Deaton, Rachel Morgan, Hobbs, and Anna Taylor all had two hits on the day.
The Lady Tigers will move to the double-elimination Final 4 format in Columbus, which begins on Friday. They will take on Bryan County, which swept Schley County, in the opening game
For Buford, the Lady Wolves battled back from an early 2-0 deficit to take the opening game, 4-2. They took the lead with two runs in the fourth and sophomore Chloe Hatcher added an insurance run in the seventh with a solo home run, her third of the season. Olivia Duncan got the win in the circle for Buford.
In the second game, the teams battled into the 10th inning when South Effingham scored three times to eventually take a 5-3 victory and force a Game 3. Buford scored one run in the bottom of the inning but could not get the equalizer. Freshman Emma Grace Williams started in the circle for the Lady Wolves before being relieved by Duncan in the sixth with the score tied 2-2.
STATE PLAYOFFS QUARTERFINALS SCORES, Oct. 28
(Game 3)
Class 6A
Buford 10, South Effingham 1 (Buford wins series 2-1)
STATE PLAYOFFS QUARTERFINALS SCORES, Oct. 27
(Best-of-3 format at higher seeded team)
Class 6A
Buford 4-3, South Effingham 2-5 (Series tied 1-1)
Class 2A
Vidalia 10-11, Banks County 1-8 (Vidalia wins series 2-0)
Region 8-A Public
Commerce 10, Lanier County 3 (Commerce wins series 2-1)
