Lady 'Cats Survive Junction City, 8-7

JUNCTION CITY - Haven Simpson's ground out in the bottom of the sixth scored what turned out to be the winning run as the Rison Lady Wildcats got past the Junction City Lady Dragons, 8-7, in the 8-2A District Tournament semifinals last Friday at Junction City.Simpson's game-winning RBI completed a late rally by the Lady 'Cats after they saw a fiverun lead become a two-run deficit in the fourth inning. Rison had to score three runs in its final two at-bats to win.Rison, the 8-2A regular season champion, five-run lead came in the second inning.MacKenzie King drew a walk to start the second before Simpson reached on an error. After a strikeout for the first out, King went to third on a passed ball and eventually scored on another passed ball to make it 1-0.After a line out for the second out, Riley Hyatt doubled into center, scoring Simpson. Layne Potter followed with another double that drove in Hyatt, and Breanna Taylor had a single that brought Potter home. Josey Edwards then belted the third double of the inning to score Taylor and make it 5-0.That five-run lead, however, was cut to one in the top of the third as the Lady Dragons used three walks and four singles to plate four runs and make it 5-4.Junction City moved in front in the fourth when a one-out error followed by a single and a walk loaded the bases. A single brought in the tying run, and then a double drove in two more to put the Lady Dragons up 7-5. Rison did not score again until the bottom of the fifth when Simpson led off with a single and then scored on a double by Rhagen Price. The Lady 'Cats tied the game when Price moved to third on a passed ball and then tagged up on Hyatt's deep liner to center to tie the game, 7-7.Edwards and Carlese Johnson started the bottom of the sixth with back-to-back singles. Lilly Gray, Edwards' courtesy runner, moved to third on a passed ball before a line out for the first out. Simpson's ground out to second allowed Gray to score what turned out to be the winning run…