The Forrest Lady Rockets like to play the most talented teams they can and it doesn’t get any better than the Riverdale Southern Warrior Classic in Murfreesboro where teams having been coming from all over the country to compete since 2015.

The Lady Rockets posted a 4-1 record at last year’s event and started the 2018 gala with two wins on Friday.

Forrest kicked off tournament play versus the Lady Bears from Plainview, Alabama and after falling behind 1-0 in the second inning, the Lady Rockets turned on the afterburners for a 13-3 win in five innings.

Kayla Gillespie picked up the win in the circle for Forrest, tossing a five-inning, complete game. Gillespie gave up two earned runs on six hits, while striking out two and walking none.

On offense, the Chapel Hill girls banged out 13 hits, including home runs by Kennedy Gillespie and Jasmine Runk.

Kaitlin Leverette (2BIs, 2B, RS), Jenna Blanton (3RBIs, RS), Laura Mealer (two 2B, 2RS, RBI), and Kennedy Gillespie (HR, 3RBIs, RS) all had two hits apiece, while Carson Warner (RBI), Runk (HR, RBI, 2RS), Ally Blanton (2BB, 2B, RS), Anna Blanton (2RS, 2FC, SB) and Zoe Long (BB, RBI) all had one safety.

An RBI single by Elaine Puckett in the top of the second inning gave Plainview the early lead before Forrest bounced back in the bottom of the inning with five runs as they batted around with Jenna Blanton driving home two runs and Kennedy Gillespie, Leverette and Long all knocking in one run apiece.

Kayla Gillespie escaped a two-on, two-out top of the third inning jam when she got out of it on an inning ending fly out to Leverette in left field.

Forrest busted the game wide open in the bottom of the third inning, sending 11 batters to the plate in the eight-run frame that included home runs by Runk and Gillespie, plus RBI base knocks by Leverette, Jenna Blanton, Warner, and Mealer.

Plainview picked up a couple of runs in the bottom of the fifth inning before the game ended on a ground ball out to Jenna Blanton at shortstop.

After a short break the Lady Rockets faced a tough Central Catholic squad from Bloomington, Illinois that gave Forrest everything they had before Chapel Hill pulled out a 6-4 win.

Ashley Milligan turned in a yeoman’s performance in the circle to pick up the win for the Lady Rockets.

Milligan, who left the game and then came back in, gave up three runs (two earned) on three hits, while striking six and walking one Lady Saints’ batter.

Laura Mealer went off in the contest, driving in five runs by drilling two home runs and just missing a third on a deep sacrifice fly to the fence.

Milligan tossed a scoreless first innings with two strikeouts and she got an early lead when the Lady Rockets posted a pair of runs in the bottom of the inning via a two-run home run by Mealer.

Milligan set down the Lady Saints 1-2-3 in the top of the second and Ally Blanton came across the plate in the home half of the frame with Forrest’s third run when she laced a two-out single and went to third on a base hit by twin sister Anna before scoring on a Bloomington fielding error.

Once again, Milligan retired Bloomington in order in the top of the fourth inning and in the bottom of the stanza, Mealer jacked a two-run shot to make it a 5-0 ballgame.

Izzy Vetter got the Lady Saints one run back in the top of the fourth inning with an RBI base hit to left field.

The Lady Rockets added another run in the bottom of the fifth inning on Mealer’s deep sacrifice fly that scored Jenna Blanton, who had reached on a leadoff error.

Vetter banged a two-run homer in the top of the sixth inning to make it 6-3 and Forrest went down 1-2-3 in the bottom of the inning.

Lauren Gillespie came on in relief of Milligan to begin the top of the seventh inning and got two outs, but walked two before Milligan came back to the circle and induced a game ending ground out to shortstop.

Plainview, AL 010 02-3 6 3

Forrest 058 0X-13 13 3

Plainview: Jacey Crowell 1-for-2, Ava Jacobs 1-for-3, Krimson Kidd 1-for-3, Elaine Puckett 1-for-2, Kenzi Traylor 1-for-3, Kennedi Traylor 1-for-3.

RS: Crowell, Jacobs, Kenzi Taylor.

2B: Puckett, Kenzi Traylor, Kennedi Traylor.

RBI: Puckett, Bailey Smart, Kenzi Traylor.

ROE: Smart, Jacobs, Crowell.

FC: Kenzi Traylor, Tobi Trotter.

Team LOB: 6

Fielding

E: Jacey Crowell, Puckett, Kennedi Traylor.

LP: Kenzi Traylor.

Forrest: Kaitlin Leverette 2-for-4, Jenna Blanton 2-for-3, Laura Mealer 2-for-3, Kennedy Gillespie 2-for-3, Carson Warner 1-for-3, Jasmine Runk 1-for-3, Ally Blanton 1-for-1, Anna Blanton 1-for-3, Zoe Long 1-for-2.

RS: Mealer 2, Runk 2, Long 2, Anna Blanton 2, Leverette, Jenna Blanton, Warner, Kennedy Gillespie, Ally Blanton.

BB: Ally Blanton 2, Long.

2B: Ally Blanton, Mealer 2, Leverette.

HR: Runk, Kennedy Gillespie.

RBI: Jenna Blanton 3, Kennedy Gillespie 3, Leverette 2, Runk, Long, Mealer, Warner.

ROE: Runk.

FC: Anna Blanton 2.

SB: Anna Blanton.

Team LOB: 3

Fielding

E: Kayla Gillespie, Long, Mealer.

WP: Kayla Gillespie (5IP, 6H, 3R, 2ER, 0BB, 2K).

Bloomington, IL 000 102 1-4 3 2

Forrest 212 010 X-6 8 5

Bloomington: Izzy Vetter 2-for-4, Charlie Sartoris 1-for-4.

RS: Sartoris 2, Vetter, Leah Eppley.

BB: Eppley, Karla Stenger, Scout Paul.

HR: Vetter.

RBI: Vetter 3, Sartoris.

SAC: Harley Schade.

ROE: Eppley, Schade, Stenger, Bailey Coffman, Diane Tomczak.

FC: Sartoris.

Team LOB: 7

Fielding

E: Sartoris, Vetter.

LP: Bailey Coffman.

Forrest: Kaitlin Leverette 2-for-3, Jenna Blanton 2-for-3, Laura Mealer 2-for-2, Ally Blanton 1-for-2, Anna Blanton 1-for-2.

RS: Jenna Blanton 2, Mealer 2, Leverette, Ally Blanton.

BB: Ally Blanton.

2B: Leverette.

HR: Mealer 2.

RBI: Mealer 5.

SAC: Anna Blanton.

SF: Mealer.

Team LOB: 2

Fielding

E: Jenna Blanton 2, Karley Daughrity 2, Mealer.

WP: Ashley Milligan (6.1IP, 3H, 3R, 2ER, 6K, 1BB).

Lauren Gillespie (.2IP, 0H, 1R, 0ER, 0K, 2BB).