Lady Lions top rival Whiteoak
Lead Summary
By
The Highland County Press-
LEESBURG — The Fairfield Lady Lions shutout the Whiteoak Lady Wildcats 7-0 to open the 2011 Southern Hills League season, Tuesday.
Lauren Larrick (2-0) threw a three-hit shutout while striking out 12 Whiteoak batters. Offensively, the Lady Lions got timely hitting throughout the lineup.
Abby Thackston and Shelby Smithson blasted solo home runs to lead the offense.
In the first two games, Larrick has struck out 22 batters.
The Lady Lions have started the season on a strong note.
"With the veteran ball team we have, we expected to come out strong," FHS head coach Matthew Zimmerman said. "We are hitting the ball better than I expected. This was just the third time we faced live pitching, so we have come out and hit the ball well.
"Our defense isn't where we would like it, but we will continue to work on it."
FHS scored three runs in the first inning.
Heather Huff was hit by a pitch to lead off the first. Huff then stole second and took third when the throw went into centerfield. Danielle Butler was safe on a ground ball error, scoring Huff. Abby Thackston followed with a deep fly ball to the left field fence for an out, as Butler tagged up, advancing to third. Butler scored on a wild pitch, sliding headfirst just ahead of the tag.
With two outs, Larrick drew a walk and Kortney Paris entered the game as a pinch runner. Paris stole second, scoring on a base hit to right-centerfield by Sirenity Smith.
FHS added another run in the bottom of the third inning.
With one out, Thackston hit a double to right field, advancing to third on a throwing error. Whitney Hanenkrat singled down the right field line, scoring Thackston. The run gave FHS a 4-0 lead.
Freshman first baseman Shelby Smithson led off the bottom of the fourth for the Lady Lions with a blast over the right-centerfield fence for solo home run, giving the Lady Lions a 5-0 lead.
In the bottom of the fifth, Thackston blasted another solo home run over the centerfield fence.
FHS completed their scoring later in the inning as Larrick singled and Courtney Huff, a pinch runner for Larrick, scored the final run.
"We did the little things right, and Lauren pitched an excellent ball game again," Zimmerman said. "We had eight hits and ran the bases extremely well. By doing the little things right, that wins games."
Larrick continued to get stronger as the game went on, striking out five of the last six batters she faced. Meanwhile, the Lady Lion defense made the plays when they counted. They pulled off a double play, and Hanenkrat, a catcher, erased two Wildcat runners attempting to steal.
Leading hitters for the Lady Lions included: Thackston (2-for-4, double, home run, two runs, one RBI), Smithson (1-for-3, home run, one run, one RBI), Butler (1-for-4, one run), Hanenkrat (1-for-3, one RBI), Larrick (1-for-2, two runs), Smith (1-for-2, one RBI) and Jade Shelton (1-for-3).
Larrick (2-0) was the winning pitcher for Fairfield. She went seven innings, allowing three hits, no runs and two walks.
"Lauren is on top of her game right now," Zimmerman said.
Juanita Nichols (0-1) suffered the loss for Whiteoak. Nichols went six innings, allowing eight hits, seven runs (two earned), and two walks. She finished with five strikeouts.
Gaining hits for WHS were Brittany Tolliver, Haley Bingamon and Becky Wagner.
[[In-content Ad]]
Lauren Larrick (2-0) threw a three-hit shutout while striking out 12 Whiteoak batters. Offensively, the Lady Lions got timely hitting throughout the lineup.
Abby Thackston and Shelby Smithson blasted solo home runs to lead the offense.
In the first two games, Larrick has struck out 22 batters.
The Lady Lions have started the season on a strong note.
"With the veteran ball team we have, we expected to come out strong," FHS head coach Matthew Zimmerman said. "We are hitting the ball better than I expected. This was just the third time we faced live pitching, so we have come out and hit the ball well.
"Our defense isn't where we would like it, but we will continue to work on it."
FHS scored three runs in the first inning.
Heather Huff was hit by a pitch to lead off the first. Huff then stole second and took third when the throw went into centerfield. Danielle Butler was safe on a ground ball error, scoring Huff. Abby Thackston followed with a deep fly ball to the left field fence for an out, as Butler tagged up, advancing to third. Butler scored on a wild pitch, sliding headfirst just ahead of the tag.
With two outs, Larrick drew a walk and Kortney Paris entered the game as a pinch runner. Paris stole second, scoring on a base hit to right-centerfield by Sirenity Smith.
FHS added another run in the bottom of the third inning.
With one out, Thackston hit a double to right field, advancing to third on a throwing error. Whitney Hanenkrat singled down the right field line, scoring Thackston. The run gave FHS a 4-0 lead.
Freshman first baseman Shelby Smithson led off the bottom of the fourth for the Lady Lions with a blast over the right-centerfield fence for solo home run, giving the Lady Lions a 5-0 lead.
In the bottom of the fifth, Thackston blasted another solo home run over the centerfield fence.
FHS completed their scoring later in the inning as Larrick singled and Courtney Huff, a pinch runner for Larrick, scored the final run.
"We did the little things right, and Lauren pitched an excellent ball game again," Zimmerman said. "We had eight hits and ran the bases extremely well. By doing the little things right, that wins games."
Larrick continued to get stronger as the game went on, striking out five of the last six batters she faced. Meanwhile, the Lady Lion defense made the plays when they counted. They pulled off a double play, and Hanenkrat, a catcher, erased two Wildcat runners attempting to steal.
Leading hitters for the Lady Lions included: Thackston (2-for-4, double, home run, two runs, one RBI), Smithson (1-for-3, home run, one run, one RBI), Butler (1-for-4, one run), Hanenkrat (1-for-3, one RBI), Larrick (1-for-2, two runs), Smith (1-for-2, one RBI) and Jade Shelton (1-for-3).
Larrick (2-0) was the winning pitcher for Fairfield. She went seven innings, allowing three hits, no runs and two walks.
"Lauren is on top of her game right now," Zimmerman said.
Juanita Nichols (0-1) suffered the loss for Whiteoak. Nichols went six innings, allowing eight hits, seven runs (two earned), and two walks. She finished with five strikeouts.
Gaining hits for WHS were Brittany Tolliver, Haley Bingamon and Becky Wagner.
[[In-content Ad]]