Lady Lions avenge loss against Whiteoak with run-rule win
Lead Summary
By
Stephen Forsha-sforsha@gmail.com
MOWRYSTOWN — Round 2 of the Southern Hills Athletic Conference rubber matchup between the Fairfield Lady Lions and the Whiteoak Lady Wildcats went to the visiting Lady Lions, Friday.
In an unexpected occurrence, the Lady 'Cats defense didn't have their best game, and Fairfield took full advantage of the constant pressure they put on their Highland County counterpart by defeating the Lady 'Cats in five innings by a 10-0 score.
The loss by Whiteoak was their first of the season, while Fairfield avenged a loss to the Lady 'Cats earlier in the week by a 1-0 score in Leesburg.
As for how the Lady Lions gained the SHAC victory, it all began in the first inning when they built a four-run lead off four hits and two errors for the 4-0 advantage.
"When you face a pitcher like Kiley Sosby, you have to make adjustments," Fairfield head coach Mark Dettwiller said. "In practice the other night, we spent a good two hours making adjustments because we knew we'd be back here (Friday), and things went our way.
"The quick turnaround to face them again this week helped tremendously," Dettwiller said. "The loss was still fresh in our minds. Giving up three total hits in a game last time and losing it was tough, so we had a focused practice Thursday."
The nightmare first inning for WHS, but dream come true first for the visiting Lady Lions, began with WHS forcing an out on a line drive, only to see Shaylee Carson single past the shortstop.
Next was Kaitlin Evans reaching first on an error at first base, and that missed play by the Lady 'Cats allowed Carson to round the bases and score the first run of the game.
Heather Sanderson singled to score Evans from second base, and that was followed by a fly ball hit to shallow center field that the Lady 'Cats were unable to catch.
After a second out was recorded, Kourtnie Smith doubled in both Sanderson and Hattan for the four-run lead with two outs.
"They had a lot of errors, but our speed causes those errors," FHS assistant coach Tom Purtell said. "The difference in the two games was we put the ball in play and didn't strike out as much."
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Kiley Sosby began the WHS first by drawing a walk, but she was left on the bases with Fairfield's Arica Melson striking out the next three batters.
The score stayed the same until the top of the fourth with the Lady Lions adding two more runs to their total, with Emily Williams and Carly Arnold scoring runs. Williams singled down the first base line and stole second base.
Williams scored the fifth FHS run on an errant throw to first base with the ball rolling into right field. Larrick followed with an infield base hit to score Arnold.
To cap the win off, the Lady Lions scored four more runs in the fifth, including a three-run home run by Smith, who plated teammates Hattan and Melson. Also scoring in the inning was Williams off another Lady 'Cats fielding error.
"We knew the power was there, and we've been waiting for that type of game with a double and home run," Purtell said.
Smith finished 2-for-3 with five RBIs.
The win went to Melson (5-1), who pitched a one-hitter in the five-inning shutout. The senior allowed no runs on one hit and one walk. She struck out five of the 17 batters she faced.
"She's pitched well all year, works hard and knows what it takes to be successful," Dettwiller said. "She gets better every year."
Sosby (8-1), who had the lone hit against Melson (a triple), suffered her first loss of the season. The senior allowed five earned runs and had nine strikeouts. She faced 31 batters.
In an unexpected occurrence, the Lady 'Cats defense didn't have their best game, and Fairfield took full advantage of the constant pressure they put on their Highland County counterpart by defeating the Lady 'Cats in five innings by a 10-0 score.
The loss by Whiteoak was their first of the season, while Fairfield avenged a loss to the Lady 'Cats earlier in the week by a 1-0 score in Leesburg.
As for how the Lady Lions gained the SHAC victory, it all began in the first inning when they built a four-run lead off four hits and two errors for the 4-0 advantage.
"When you face a pitcher like Kiley Sosby, you have to make adjustments," Fairfield head coach Mark Dettwiller said. "In practice the other night, we spent a good two hours making adjustments because we knew we'd be back here (Friday), and things went our way.
"The quick turnaround to face them again this week helped tremendously," Dettwiller said. "The loss was still fresh in our minds. Giving up three total hits in a game last time and losing it was tough, so we had a focused practice Thursday."
The nightmare first inning for WHS, but dream come true first for the visiting Lady Lions, began with WHS forcing an out on a line drive, only to see Shaylee Carson single past the shortstop.
Next was Kaitlin Evans reaching first on an error at first base, and that missed play by the Lady 'Cats allowed Carson to round the bases and score the first run of the game.
Heather Sanderson singled to score Evans from second base, and that was followed by a fly ball hit to shallow center field that the Lady 'Cats were unable to catch.
After a second out was recorded, Kourtnie Smith doubled in both Sanderson and Hattan for the four-run lead with two outs.
"They had a lot of errors, but our speed causes those errors," FHS assistant coach Tom Purtell said. "The difference in the two games was we put the ball in play and didn't strike out as much."
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Kiley Sosby began the WHS first by drawing a walk, but she was left on the bases with Fairfield's Arica Melson striking out the next three batters.
The score stayed the same until the top of the fourth with the Lady Lions adding two more runs to their total, with Emily Williams and Carly Arnold scoring runs. Williams singled down the first base line and stole second base.
Williams scored the fifth FHS run on an errant throw to first base with the ball rolling into right field. Larrick followed with an infield base hit to score Arnold.
To cap the win off, the Lady Lions scored four more runs in the fifth, including a three-run home run by Smith, who plated teammates Hattan and Melson. Also scoring in the inning was Williams off another Lady 'Cats fielding error.
"We knew the power was there, and we've been waiting for that type of game with a double and home run," Purtell said.
Smith finished 2-for-3 with five RBIs.
The win went to Melson (5-1), who pitched a one-hitter in the five-inning shutout. The senior allowed no runs on one hit and one walk. She struck out five of the 17 batters she faced.
"She's pitched well all year, works hard and knows what it takes to be successful," Dettwiller said. "She gets better every year."
Sosby (8-1), who had the lone hit against Melson (a triple), suffered her first loss of the season. The senior allowed five earned runs and had nine strikeouts. She faced 31 batters.