Central earns only win of conference tourney

By DONN ADAMSON
Daily Journal Sports Editor

STE. GENEVIEVE — The MAAA Softball Conference Tournament was scheduled to play its opening and semifinal rounds on Monday, but only the Central Lady Rebels were able to secure a five-innng win on the weather-troubled afternoon.

Having to wait out a pair of delays, one for rain, the other for lightning, the Lady Rebels were able to claim a first-round  14-1 win over the host team, Ste. Genevieve Hunters.

Play was stopped in the seventh inning in the other first-round game between the Farmington Knightettes and the Fredericktown Lady Cats. (Whether or not the final inning will be concluded was not decided by press time.) The two semi-final games were postponed until today.

Central 14, Ste. Genevieve 1

The Lady Rebels grabbed the early momentum, taking advantage of three errors by the Hunters in the top of the first inning to score three runs. The momentum was never turned as Central went on to win the game 14-1 in five innings.

Central (6-13) hit the ball with consistency as they pounded out 14 hits. The Hunters could only manage two hits off of Taylor Friend, the Lady Rebels pitcher. Friend struck out 10 batters and gave up only one walk and one hit batter to go with the Hunters two hits.

Central scored three runs in the first inning. Sabrina Tripp scored from first base on a single by Ashley Coplin. Taking third on the throw-in from the outfield, Tripp was able to scamper home on an overthrow to third. Coplin scored from second on a single by Friend, and Friend made it all the way to third as her hit got past the outfielder. Friend scored on a wild pich.

Erin St. Gemme opened up the top of the second inning with a ground-rule double, followed by a walk to Maggie Cunningham. Both girls moved up a base on a wild pitch, and both scored on a single by Coplin. Coplin finished the night 3-3 with a double, a walk and two RBI.

The Lady Rebels scored three more runs in the inning. singles by Addid Scoggin and Melanee Cunningham set up an RBI walk by Sarah Tripp and a two-RBI single by Brooke Dixon that made the score 8-0.

Brittany Basler took one for the team in the Hunters half of the fourth, and it led to their lone run. Reaching second on a wild pitch, Basler was able to score on a single by Alicia Viox. Viox also led off the second with the Hunters only other hit.

Any momentum the Hunters gained in the inning was soon squelched as even the elements of weather seemed to be against them. With only one out and runners on first and second, the rain which had started at the top of the inning became a deluge and time was called as players and fans scattered for shelter.

After a 10-minute delay, play was resumed and Friend struck out the next two batters to end the inning and any momentum the Hunters had acquired. A delay for lightning was called by the umpires prior to the start of the fifth inning.

When play resumed, doubles by Coplin and Friend in the fifth inning gave the Lady Rebels the needed run, 11-1, to end the game early by teh 10-run rule. Scoring three more runs in the inning, the Lady Rebels closed out any hopes of a Ste. Genevieve comeback, and Friend closed the door by striking out three straight batters after issuing a walk to Brittany Uding in the bottom of the fifth inning.

Central will now face the No. 1 seed North County Raiders in the semifinals today at a time still to be determined. 

Farmington 8, Fredericktown 1 (sspd. in 7th)

With lightning near the field, play in the opening round game between the Farmgnton Knightettes and the Fredericktown Lady Cats was suspended. A make-up of the inning is still to be determined as to when to be played or if played at all.

The Knightettes were leading the game 8-1 with a runner on first and no outs in the seventh, if play should resume.

Farmington scored two runs each in the second, third, fourth and sixth inning. The Lady Cats scored their lone run in the second inning. There were seven extra-base hits in the game with the Lady Cats having four. Fredericktown also committed four errors in the game to Farmington’s one.

Tayler Benne was 2-3 for the Knightettes with a triple. Chelsea Thomure and Sonya Hahn were both 1-3 with a double, and Nikki Broccard, Allie Trask and Erin Littrell had one single each.

Littrell pitched all six innings for the Knightettes striking out five batters and giving up only one walk.

 Hitters for the Lady Cats were Miriah Korokis 2-2 with a double and a triple. Nikki Mascaro was 1-2 wwith a double, and Haley Stevens was 1-3 with a triple.