Greenville to entertain Royse City tonight
April 22, 2011

By David Claybourn
Herald-Banner Sports Editor

Greenville's Lions and Lady Lions are hoping for better weather conditions tonight when they entertain Royse City in District 13-4A baseball and softball.

The 10-13-1 Lions will entertain Royse City at 7:30 at John Mason Field following the 4:30 junior varsity contest.

The 10-12 Lady Lions will host Royse City and its ace pitcher, Alicia Pille, at 6:30 following the 5 p.m. junior varsity game.

Both Greenville teams ran into bad weather on Tuesday in Texarkana. The Lions' game was called because of lightning and rain after five innings. Because Texas High was ahead 3-1, the Tigers were awarded the victory.

The Lady Lions were leading Texas High 6-2 in the third inning when their game was suspended. The two teams were to complete the game on Wednesday or Thursday but were unable to because of wet conditions in Texarkana. They are set to resume that game at 11 a.m. on Saturday, again in Texarkana.

Pille is perhaps the top 4A pitcher in the Metroplex, having struck out 310 batters in 128 innings while allowing only 13 walks. Her earned run average is 0.766.

Pille struck out 19 while firing a one-hitter during Royse City's 2-0 victory over Greenville on March 29 in Royse City. Rachael Cook managed Greenville's only hit.

Pille, who has committed to the University of Kansas, also has home run power as a hitter. She slugged a grand slam homer and a three-run shot during a district victory over Mount Pleasant.

The Lions' loss to Texas High snapped a three-game win streak that also included victories of 4-2 over Sulphur Springs, 9-5 over Mount Pleasant and 10-5 over Little Elm.

Greenville lost a 15-11 slugfest with Royse City during their first district meeting back on March 29 in Royse City.