“I’m sorry it’s over,” said Nansemond River’s head softball coach Tim Tarafas after his Lady Warriors (8-10) had just finished their season with a 7-2 win over city rival Lakeland (4-14) Friday evening at NR.

All coaches feel the same sentiment at the end of a season, but Tarafas was sorry to see the softball season end because, “the second half of our season was much better than our first. Our outlook for next year is pretty good.”

In Friday’s finale, Nansemond River scored all seven of its runs in the home half of the first inning. Senior Rachel Hawks held the lead comfortably from there, pitching a complete game with 11 strikeouts.

After Lakeland didn’t score in the top of the first, the first five Lady Warrior hitters reached base and came around to score.

Freshman Sydney Glover led off with a bunt single. Anna Cain, NR’s senior clean-up hitter, drove in two runs with a hit up the middle.

Glover reached base three times and Jessica Adams went 2-for-3 and scored a run. Cain finished an incredible season by going 2-for-3 at the plate, which will actually bring her season batting average down.

Losing Cain is the only thing Tarafas is already concerned about looking ahead to next season.

“Anna hit at or just over .700. She leads the team in every offensive stat,” Tarafas said.

The last time Tarafas checked his season stats, he had Cain’s slugging percentage around 1.260 and she was around 30 RBI.

“When you see the runs we scored this season, that (Cain’s RBIs) is most of them,” Tarafas said.

Cain starred as NR’s catcher, too. District opponents attempted only four stolen bases against Cain this season and Cain threw out three of the four runners.

“That was all because of the respect she gets all around the district,” Tarafas said. “We’ll have to learn to call pitches, too, because she’s called every pitch for the last two years.”

Nansemond River finishes the season with a 3-1 record against Lakeland and King’s Fork. KF was 2-2 and the Lady Cavaliers were 1-3.