NASHVILLE n In five games, Lawrence Academy outscored their opponents 35-16.

Unfortunately for the Lady Warriors, the lop-sided scoring wasn’t enough to secure their third consecutive North Carolina Independent School Athletic Association 1-A state softball championship.

The Lady Warriors did, however, bounce back from an opening loss to reach the title game and claim runner up honors.

Lawrence vs. Faith

The Lady Warriors were cruising by their rivals with a 4-0 advantage when a collision between two fielders spelled disaster.

The Warriors scored three in the first inning when Ruth Stotesbury started the game with a single to right, stole second and third and scored on an errant throw to nab her at third.

Jodi White then singled and stole second. She scored on Kendall Street’s RBI double to left-center field. Street went to third on a passed ball and scored on a single by Lauren Rea to make it 3-0.

The next run for Lawrence came in the second when Asytyn Mizelle singled but was erased on a fielder’s choice with Stotesbury at the plate. Stotesbury stole second and scored when Jessica Johnston reached on a two-base error to make it 4-0.

Faith got their first two runs in the third when the collision with two outs allowed two runs to score. They added two more then next inning to deadlock the score at 4-all.

Lawrence temporarily took the advantage back on a solo homer by White in the bottom of the fifth frame.

The Lady Patriots claimed their lead with three runs in the sixth, all coming on errors after a base hit by Becca Pugh. The result was a 7-5 lead for Faith.

Faith got another run in the seventh, their only earned run of the contest, when Mary Kate Watson singled and came home on a Paige Thomas triple to make it 8-5.

White blasted another shot out of the park in the seventh for Lawrence, but it wasn’t enough as they fell 8-6.

Lawrence vs. Wayne Christian

The Wayne Christian contest couldn’t have been any more different.

The Lady Warriors scored two runs in each of the first three innings and rolled to an 8-0 win.

With two out in the first, White walked and scored when Street reached on a two-base error. Street scored on Rea’s RBI-single to make it 2-0.

In the second stanza, Ashley Swain doubled before Mizelle drew a walk. Both scored on Johnston’s triple to right-center, making it 4-0.

Walks to Street and Rea allowed courtesy runners Jennifer White and Courtney Mizelle to score on wild pitches, making it 6-0.

Lawrence added one in the fifth, thanks to a LeAnne Eubanks single, and another in the sixth on a base hit by Stotesbury to establish the final score.

Lawrence vs. Faith

On Saturday morning, the Warriors wasted little time redeeming their earlier loss to Faith.

Three runs in the second, two in the fifth and two in the sixth allowed them to cruise to a 7-1 victory.

Eubanks started the second with a double. Swain walked and Mizelle reached on a fielder’s choice to load the bases. A walk to Stotesbury forced in the first run and the other two scored on errors to make it 3-0.

The Warriors got two in the fifth when Street singled and Eubanks reached on a fielder’s choice. Both scored on Debbie Stotesbury’s single to make it 5-0.

Faith scored their only run in the sixth inning.

Lawrence scored again in the sixth when Mizelle reached on an error and Stotesbury on a single. Both scored on Rea’s single to make it 7-1.

Lawrence vs. Cape Fear I

The Lady Warriors jumped on Cape Fear early in the first game of the championship series.

Stotesbury reached on a bunt single and Street walked. Both scored when Rea reached on a fielder’s choice to make it 2-0 in the first frame.

Lawrence added four in the second thanks to a walk to Swain, triples by Mizelle and Johnston and a double off the bat of White.

That gave the Warriors a 6-0 lead from which they never looked back.

In all, the Warriors recorded 10 hits in the contest they won 12-1.

The game-winning hit was a double by White that scored Stotesbury and Johnston.

Lawrence vs. Cape Fear II

The Warriors played hard in the second game of the finals, but came up short.

Their only marks came in the third and sixth.

In the third inning, Mizelle walked and scored on an errant pickoff throw.

In the sixth, Johnston hit a solo shot to left to make it 6-2.

“We got some excellent run support for most of the tournament,” Lawrence coach Truitt Johnston said. “We hit the ball well. When you score more than 30 runs in five games, you would expect to win them.”