Missed opportunities send Lady Tigers out of postseason
Lead Summary
By
Stephen Forsha-sforsha@gmail.com
MCDERMOTT — All good things must come to an end at some point in time, and Tuesday was the time for the McClain Lady Tigers to end their '13 season.
Missed opportunities to score with the bases loaded in the top of the first, followed by a late comeback effort, didn't add up for the No. 5 seeded Lady Tigers, as the No. 1 seeded Warren Lady Warriors hit the ball and scored consistently, defeating MHS, 10-3 at Northwest High School in the Division II SE District semifinals.
MHS (14-8) began this season with very few players who had any starting varsity experience, but by the time the season came to a close with this loss, MHS finished in the same round they did one season ago, as the improvement from Game 1 to Game 22 showed.
"I was proud of the effort the girls showed when we scored the three runs, but we had chances to score early, but we didn't," McClain head coach Jarrod Haines said.
"Credit Warren … they hit the ball and strung runs together."
McClain's big opportunity to put a dent in the scoreboard came in the top of the first, as the first three batters reached the bases. Alli Willett forced a leadoff walk on 11 pitches. From there, Cierra Landrum took first on an infield error. Shania Massie loaded the bases with a five-pitch walk, as the first three MHS batters forced Warren pitcher Kaylee Higgins to throw 22 pitches.
The next three MHS batters forced Higgins to throw a combined seven pitches. Those pitches resulted in a fly out to centerfield, a swinging strikeout and a pop up to second base on one pitch, keeping the game scoreless.
Warren answered with a three-run second, and later, a single run in the fourth for a 4-0 lead. In the fifth, Warren broke the game open with four runs, taking a 8-0 lead.
In the bottom of the sixth, the Lady Warriors added two more runs to their side of the scoreboard.
MHS scored their three runs in the sixth inning with Sarah Thompson beginning the late scoring by taking first on an infield error. After the next two batters recorded outs, Katy Unger doubled in Thompson, sending the ball to the centerfield fence. Anna Ehlers followed suit by singling to centerfield, scoring Unger.
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Ehlers scored the final Lady Tiger run of the season, rounding the bases on a single from Savannah Anderson.
"Katy and Anna had big two-out hits for us, so I was proud of how they batted in those situations," Haines said.
For the game, MHS left eight runners stranded.
Then there was Warren, who totaled 13 hits and 10 RBIs, while they also collected one sacrifice fly and one walk.
The loss went to Landrum. Landrum pitched six innings, allowing 10 runs (eight earned) on 13 hits and one walk. Landrum struck out four.
Higgins earned the win. She pitched seven innings, allowing three runs (none earned) on five hits and two walks, while striking out three.
Arriane Schetter led WHS at the plate, going 3-for-4s with two RBIs, while courtesy runner A. Coffman scored one run. Kendra Lynch was 2-for-4 with two runs and one RBI, while Higgins was 2-for-3 with a walk and two runs. Katelyn Coffman finished 2-for-3 with three RBIs.
Also for the Lady Warriors, Hailey Murdock, Riley Benson, Brandi Douglass and Kylee Lynch each recorded one hit. Benson scored two runs, while Douglass had two RBIs, one run and a sacrifice fly. Lynch collected one run and one RBI. Natalie Knowlton also collected one RBI.
Playing their final game for MHS were Landrum and Dettwiller, as both players were on the varsity team for four seasons.
"Both seniors did a great job this season," Haines said. "They were good leaders, and we wouldn't have gotten as far as we did without them. They will be tough to replace. The progress we made from start to finish was because of the two seniors."
Missed opportunities to score with the bases loaded in the top of the first, followed by a late comeback effort, didn't add up for the No. 5 seeded Lady Tigers, as the No. 1 seeded Warren Lady Warriors hit the ball and scored consistently, defeating MHS, 10-3 at Northwest High School in the Division II SE District semifinals.
MHS (14-8) began this season with very few players who had any starting varsity experience, but by the time the season came to a close with this loss, MHS finished in the same round they did one season ago, as the improvement from Game 1 to Game 22 showed.
"I was proud of the effort the girls showed when we scored the three runs, but we had chances to score early, but we didn't," McClain head coach Jarrod Haines said.
"Credit Warren … they hit the ball and strung runs together."
McClain's big opportunity to put a dent in the scoreboard came in the top of the first, as the first three batters reached the bases. Alli Willett forced a leadoff walk on 11 pitches. From there, Cierra Landrum took first on an infield error. Shania Massie loaded the bases with a five-pitch walk, as the first three MHS batters forced Warren pitcher Kaylee Higgins to throw 22 pitches.
The next three MHS batters forced Higgins to throw a combined seven pitches. Those pitches resulted in a fly out to centerfield, a swinging strikeout and a pop up to second base on one pitch, keeping the game scoreless.
Warren answered with a three-run second, and later, a single run in the fourth for a 4-0 lead. In the fifth, Warren broke the game open with four runs, taking a 8-0 lead.
In the bottom of the sixth, the Lady Warriors added two more runs to their side of the scoreboard.
MHS scored their three runs in the sixth inning with Sarah Thompson beginning the late scoring by taking first on an infield error. After the next two batters recorded outs, Katy Unger doubled in Thompson, sending the ball to the centerfield fence. Anna Ehlers followed suit by singling to centerfield, scoring Unger.
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Ehlers scored the final Lady Tiger run of the season, rounding the bases on a single from Savannah Anderson.
"Katy and Anna had big two-out hits for us, so I was proud of how they batted in those situations," Haines said.
For the game, MHS left eight runners stranded.
Then there was Warren, who totaled 13 hits and 10 RBIs, while they also collected one sacrifice fly and one walk.
The loss went to Landrum. Landrum pitched six innings, allowing 10 runs (eight earned) on 13 hits and one walk. Landrum struck out four.
Higgins earned the win. She pitched seven innings, allowing three runs (none earned) on five hits and two walks, while striking out three.
Arriane Schetter led WHS at the plate, going 3-for-4s with two RBIs, while courtesy runner A. Coffman scored one run. Kendra Lynch was 2-for-4 with two runs and one RBI, while Higgins was 2-for-3 with a walk and two runs. Katelyn Coffman finished 2-for-3 with three RBIs.
Also for the Lady Warriors, Hailey Murdock, Riley Benson, Brandi Douglass and Kylee Lynch each recorded one hit. Benson scored two runs, while Douglass had two RBIs, one run and a sacrifice fly. Lynch collected one run and one RBI. Natalie Knowlton also collected one RBI.
Playing their final game for MHS were Landrum and Dettwiller, as both players were on the varsity team for four seasons.
"Both seniors did a great job this season," Haines said. "They were good leaders, and we wouldn't have gotten as far as we did without them. They will be tough to replace. The progress we made from start to finish was because of the two seniors."