AHOSKIE – Jessica Johnston simply shut down Hobgood Academy.

The junior hurler dominated the second-seeded Lady Raiders Tuesday afternoon, allowing a single hit as Lawrence Academy claimed the Tarheel Independent Conference tournament championship with a 16-0 win over Hobgood.

&uot;I can’t say enough about how well we played as a team,&uot; LA coach Truitt Johnston said. &uot;Every single person was a part of the tournament championship.

&uot;Our hitting was exceptional from top to bottom,&uot; he continued. &uot;I am pleased with the way we’re playing right now.&uot;

Hobgood got their only hit in the top of the first inning when a slow roller off the end of the bat died between home and third, but the runner never advanced past first base.

After a quiet first frame, the Lady Warriors exploded in the second inning.

Taylor Mizelle and Ashley Swain each reached on an error. Gabby Layton then singled to center, scoring Mizelle and sending Swain to second. Swain advanced to third when Catherine Outten reached on an error.

A Johnston single to center scored both Swain and Layton to put the Lady Warriors up by three.

Jodi White was issued an intentional free pass to load the bases before a Ruth Stotesbury single scored Outten. A Lauren Rea sacrifice fly scored Johnston and sent White to third before Mizelle reached on an error, scoring White. The final run of the inning scored when Swain reached on an error, giving Lawrence an 8-0 advantage.

After Johnston set down three in a row for the Lady Raiders, Lawrence came back for an additional six runs.

Outten doubled with one out before Johnston had a two-run homer to centerfield. White followed with a homerun to right-center pushing the lead to 11-0.

Stotesbury continued the rally with a single to center. She came around to score on a triple by Rea, who scored on a Mizelle bunt single. Mizelle went to second on a passed ball and advanced to third on a Swain single to left. She scored on a fielder’s choice to give Lawrence a 14-0 advantage.

The top of the fourth was quiet for Hobgood as their only runner was erased when Rea picked her off at first base.

Outten singled to open the fourth, but was erased on a fielder’s choice with Johnston at the plate. White then followed by hitting a two-run shot over the leftfield fence securing a 16-0 win.

Johnston then struck out the final two batters of the game to give her team the TIC tournament title to add to the regular season championship.