Tigers Pass It On

FARMINGTON -- Freely the Prairie Grove softball team received and freely the Lady Tigers gave.

Rainfall rendered Prairie Grove's field unplayable, so the Lady Tigers requested and received permission from their U.S. 62 rival and former, 4A-1 opponent, Farmington, to host a softball game against Gentry which the Lady Tigers won 8-4 at Farmington's field on April 15.

Gentry had 4 good hits with runners on base accounting for their runs but surrendered 5 runs to Prairie Grove in the sixth inning.

"We take away that one inning and we win the game," said Gentry coach Lance Nation. "All our runs came on RBI base hits. We had four good hits when we had runners in scoring position that drove runs in."

Prairie Grove's lineup also produced clutch hits, especially in the latter innings with the game on the line.

"We hit the ball pretty well that day. We hit when we had runners in scoring position. We've been working on that," said Prairie Grove coach Dustin Beck. "Early we struggled until about the third inning when we kind of settled in."

The teams also played a junior varsity game on Farmington's field. At the end of the junior varsity game, Prairie Grove voluntarily gave up an in-the-park home run to Gentry junior Mekalah Ramsey, who has Down syndrome. Mekalah has physical challenges including hip dysplasia with her hips not formed right which makes walking and running more difficult for her. Mekalah is legally blind in one eye and doesn't see well out of the other.

According to Mekalah's mother Melinda Ramsey, she and her husband, Daniel, Gentry's defensive coordinator and head junior high football coach, thought Mekalah could just be a part of the Gentry softball team expecting her to sit on the bench.

"The team wanted her to be able to do more. The girls wanted her to play," Melinda Ramsey said. "They saw weaknesses in her and allowed her to overcome those weaknesses by letting her be a part of the team."

Gentry head softball coach Lance Nation and assistant Danny Corter established a team tradition of ending each junior varsity game with Mekalah batting. Prairie Grove head coach Dustin Beck agreed with Gentry's proposal and the Lady Tigers helped make Mekalah's dream come true.