Just call it a grand entrance to the district finals.
Aubrey Rabun, a seventh-grader, smashed a walk-off grand slam in the bottom of the eighth inning to propel Ashley Ridge’s softball team to a 6-2 win over defending Class AA champion Hanahan Saturday.
The Lady Swamp Foxes advanced to Wednesday’s District 6 championship and could meet Hanahan again but the Hawkettes would have to win twice.
Ashley Ridge rallied with two outs to load the bases.
Pitcher Paige DeSchaine got a base hit to right field to start it. Hanahan then made back-to-back fielding errors on would-be third outs to load them up for Rabun.
After fouling off the first pitch, Rabun unloaded on one to left center for her first blast of the year.
“Aubrey has as much heart as this program can handle,” Ashley Ridge coach Lindsey Blackmon said. “I knew that she was the one that, if something special was going to happen, it would happen for her.”
DeSchaine surrendered four hits in the game to get the win inside the circle.
She worked out of a bases-loaded jam in the top of the sixth inning and the Lady Swamp Foxes scored two runs in the bottom of the inning to tie the game 2-2.
“The win today is tremendous,” Blackmon said. “Hanahan is a great program with great history and a great team currently. To beat Bishop England and to beat Hanahan, those are the teams you have to beat to be in the talk about things.”
One win Wednesday would put the Lady Swamp Foxes into the Lower State final four, which begins Saturday.

You can reach Roger Lee by calling 873-9424 or emailing rlee@journalscene.com.