Three area softball teams will make the quick trek to Ariton this weekend to take part in a tournament before area play heats up.

Goshen, Charles Henderson and Zion Chapel will all converge on the softball complex in the small Dale County town looking to pick up some late-season momentum.

The Lady Eagles stumbled through the season’s early weeks, but have gotten hot as of late. Goshen has won four of its last five games, and has scored at least eight runs in the three of the wins. The Lady Eagles scored 20 runs in a rout of cross-county rival Pike County earlier this week.

Goshen head coach Amy Warrick said her team had ups-and-downs early on, but has come around in the past few games.

“We are starting to get the bats to come alive,” said Warrick. “We still have a lot of work to do, but if you can get the bats going everything else seems to fall in to place. Everyone relaxes a little because they know the offense will be there.”

Charles Henderson has limped through a rough season with an extremely young team. The Lady Trojans have went toe-to-toe with some of the best teams in all of the state, including 6A powerhouses Prattville, Theodore and Auburn.

In each of the games, Charles Henderson has played with the older, more-experienced teams for a handful of innings until the dreaded “big inning” strikes.

The Lady Trojans have given up at least four runs in an inning in almost every game this season, something that head coach Trent Givens believes is more mental than mechincal.

“Right now with us it is a mental thing,” said Givens. “We have different drills and things that work on and help build the mental part of the game. We will continue to do those. We played a solid game on Tuesday, and turnaround a struggle a little on Thursday. Hopefully we will come out focused at Ariton on Saturday, and take a step forward.

Down in Jack, the Lady Rebels of Zion Chapel have quietly put together an impressive early-season resume.

Zion Chapel has taken control of the area race with a one-run win over Goshen and blowout of rival New Brockton this week. For the last several week, Zion Chapel has set just on the outside of the 2A poll, as picked by the Alabama Sports Writers Association.

Zion Chapel, led by senior pitcher Shelby Sorrells, has made a statement through the season’s first few weeks.

“We aren’t done working to get better,” said Zion Chapel head coach Chelsi Jones. “We like what we have done so far, but know that we must keep getting better every day. Our girls know that, and come to the field everyday to work. This group of girls is ready to do whatever it takes to reach their goals.”