Warlassies run away from Greyhounds in playoff opener

Owen storms back to 12-2 victory at home

Fred McCormick
The Valley Echo
May 6, 2025

What began as a slow start to postseason play, May 6, ended in a flurry of runs and a 12-2 Owen victory over North Surry.

The back-to-back Western Highlands Conference champion Warlassies stormed back from an early 2-1 deficit, scoring a total of 11 runs in the fifth and sixth innings to advance to the second round of the NCHSAA 2A State Softball Playoffs.

Owen, which finished the regular season with a 15-3 record and a 12-0 mark in the conference, entered the state championship tournament as a No. 7 seed, hosting the No. 26 Greyhounds. North Surry jumped out to an early 1-run lead in the top of the first inning, before establishing a 2-0 advantage in the third.

Freshman Kylie Gurecky put the Warlassies on the scoreboard in the bottom of the fourth inning, slapping a triple to left center field and driving in junior Easton Whitson to cut the visiting team’s lead in half. While the Greyhounds opened the fifth with a single, a groundball to junior Elly Wright started a double play that ended the top half of the inning.

The Owen dugout was energized to start the bottom half of the fifth, as senior Bryanna Stafford walked on a full count. Senior pitcher Sophie Neal followed with a well-placed bunt down the third base line, before a bunt by Wright led to a errant throw to first that allowed Stafford to score.

Sophomore Mia Roland gave the Warlassies their first lead of the contest with a two-run double, while scoring later in the inning on a single Gurecky.

Owen carried a 5-2 advantage into the home half of the sixth inning, when another bunt by Neal scored Stafford from third base. The offense of the Warlassies added another 6 runs in their at-bat, activating the 10-run mercy rule.

Owen’s early offensive struggles led to a “small ball” approach in the later innings, according to head coach Pete Ledford, whose team delivered him another playoff victory one night before his birthday.

“I talked to my assistant coach, Joe (Valencia), and we thought it might be a good idea to lay some bunts down and get the ball in play,” Ledford said. “We have some good bunters and good speed on this team, so we trusted them to put pressure on the other team and get something going.”

As the momentum shifted to the home team’s favor, the bats came alive, he continued.

“Hitting is contagious,” Ledford said. “Once these girls find their bats, they get rolling. Every single one of these players can hit.”

The players remained confident while trailing early in the contest, according to the coach.

“A freshman, Kylie Gurecki, got us started when she drove in that run in the fourth inning,” Ledford said. “When she got back in the dugout, she told the rest of them it’s go time.”

The Warlassies will return home for the second round of the playoffs, Friday, May 9, when they host the winner of a matchup between No. 10 Lincoln Charter and No. 23 Madison.

“We just need to stay relaxed and enjoy this. At the end of the day, it’s still a game they have played all their lives,” Ledford said. “But, after the game I did tell them not to wait so long to get started because they put some grey hairs on me in those early innings.”

Photos of Owen’s opening round victory in the 2025 NCHSAA 2A State Softball Playoffs can be viewed in the gallery at the top of the page.