The Magnolia Softball Tournament begins Friday morning with both El Dorado and Parkers Chapel scheduled to compete. The Lady Trojans open play against Genoa at 9:30 a.m. The Lady Wildcats take on Camden Fairview at 11:30 a.m.
El Dorado has gotten off to an 8-0 start to the season behind a strong defense and the pitching of senior Grace Hargett. Coach Chris Ezell hopes the tournament will help his team prepare for the upcoming conference schedule.
“We are looking to get some momentum building back up after the time off. Hopefully, the days off allowed them to get some rest and relaxation and have them ready to play ball Friday morning,” said Ezell.
“I expect all the games to be extremely competitive. We chose to play on the back end of spring break to help get ready for the upcoming conference slate where we will face the top teams in our conference over the next couple of weeks.”
Parkers Chapel will bring a 5-3 record into the tournament under Coach Rhonda Swilley. The Lady Trojans look forward to the healthy return of Taylor Fortune to the lineup this week.
“I’m excited about playing in the tournament because I feel like the basketball girls were able to get a little down time this week and be ready to play some softball,” Swilley said. “The teams in Magnolia will be very good competition so I feel like we will be preparing for our conference schedule.”
If El Dorado wins, it would play again Friday at 5:30 p.m. If Parkers Chapel wins, it would play at 3:30 p.m. The championship game is scheduled for Saturday at 7:30 p.m.