VERO BEACH, Fla. – Creekside came up one win short of a softball state championship.
One day after pulling off a stellar comeback, the Knights couldn’t dig out of an early hole and suffered an 8-3 loss to Lake Region in the Class 7A state championship on Friday afternoon in Vero Beach.
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The Knights, who were making just the second title game appearance in school history, finished their season at 25-5. Creekside was held to just five hits, including doubles by Allison Bratek and Mallorie Sykes.
The start against Lake Region, a 6-0 deficit by the end of the fourth, was reminiscent of Creekside’s beginning against Fort Myers on Thursday in the state semifinals. The Knights fell into a 5-0 deficit, but rallied to win 7-6. But Creekside just couldn’t find the offense to make it a comeback double.
The Knights battled to catch up.
An error on a Madison Bratek hit in the fifth inning pushed two Creekside runs across to get the Knights to within 6-2, but four runs was as close as it would get the rest of the way.
Lake Region was money when it mattered.
It scored six of its first seven runs in innings when it had two outs.
A single in the bottom of the second drove in a pair of runs. A bases-loaded double in the fourth by Savanah Barnett pushed in three runs. BreAsia Thomas singled in a run with two outs in the fifth. The other run in that span was unearned. Barnett struck out seven for Lake Region. All three runs were unearned.
Creekside was just the second area team to play for a softball title this season. Trinity Christian won the Class 4A crown on Wednesday.