By MATT KING
Daily Journal Sports Writer

Published: Thursday, November 12, 2009
Updated: Tuesday, October 13, 2009 11:15 AM CDT

POTOSI — Senior pitcher Abby Roland and the De Soto defense prevented  top-seeded Central from earning its first-ever district title on Monday night, avenging a shutout loss from earlier this season.

Roland tossed a three-hit shutout and recorded seven strikeouts in a 7-0 championship victory, as the Lady Dragons advanced to the Class 3 state playoffs for the fifth time in school history.

Sophomore Hailey Brown finished 2-for-4 with four RBI from the clean-up spot, including a timely three-run double in the sixth inning after Central had squandered its most dangerous scoring chance of the night.

Brooke Dixon singled and Kiley Horton doubled with two outs in the fifth and the Lady Rebels trailing 2-0, but Brown handled a sharp grounder toward second base to preserve the De Soto advantage.

An infield hit by Roland and a bobbled sacrifice bunt sparked the productive sixth for the Lady Dragons. Brown cleared the bases with by plugging the gap in right-center, and Caitlyn Polley made it 6-0 with a RBI single.

Roland scored three runs with two stolen bases and retired her first nine batters faced. De Soto (13-13) will face Notre Dame and all-State pitcher Lauren Reinagel in the sectional round on Wednesday.

Central hurler Taylor Friend allowed four hits while striking out seven, but three errors behind her led to five unearned runs. The sophomore right-hander retired 14 straight batters after De Soto tallied twice in the opening frame.

The Lady Rebels failed to complete a force play at second after Roland began the game with a walk, and Brown followed with a RBI single to right field that deflected off the first baseman’s glove.

Infielder Melanee Cunningham stroked a lead-off single in the Central fourth, but made the second out at third base when Roland alertly snagged a one-hopper back to the circle.

SEMIFINAL ROUND

Central 9, Potosi 6

POTOSI — Central secured a comfortable lead with four unearned runs in the first inning, and reached the finals of the Class 3, District 1 tournament with a 9-6 triumph over conference rival Potosi.

Melanee Cunningham blasted a two-run homer off junior hurler Ali Rhodes in the second frame, and Taylor Friend went 2-for-4 with two runs scored to pace the Central offense.

Maggee Cunningham yielded nine hits and struck out four batters over six innings for the win. She was successful in overcoming four defensive errors by the Lady Rebels, as the fifth-seeded Lady Trojans stranded 12 runners.

Kayti Stone crossed the plate on a wild pitch to begin the scoring, but Potosi (5-18) spent the remainder of the game playing from behind after a missed ground ball allowed both Melanee Cunningham and Addie Scoggin to score in the bottom of the first.

Catcher Kiley Horton doubled ahead of Cunningham’s homer for a 6-1 margin. However, the Lady Rebels failed to record outs on two consecutive bunts, leading to three runs in the Potosi third.

Central restored its five-run cushion to 9-4 on a two-run double by Ashley Coplin after Sabrina Tripp opened the fourth with a triple to right. Brooke Dixon and Erin St. Gemme had additional hits in the victory.

Potosi brought the potential tying run to the plate in the sixth after Megan Osbahr singled home Emilee Dicus, but Horton picked off Osbahr at second base to eliminate the threat.

Friend then worked a perfect seventh to earn the save.

The Lady Trojans loaded the bases on back-to-back singles from Stone and Ashley Duncan after Paige Coleman was plunked in the fifth, but a running catch by left fielder Ashley Hovis kept the inning scoreless.

Dicus finished the game 2-for-3 with a walk, and Takiesha Cluck scored two runs for Potosi. Rhodes fanned three in defeat, and assisted on all three putouts in the sixth.

De Soto 9, North County 3

POTOSI — Caitlyn Polley collected two-run singles in the fourth and fifth innings, and went 2-for-4 overall with five RBI as De Soto ended the season for North County with a 9-3 semifinal win.

Dee Dee Peters also tallied two hits with three runs scored, including a RBI triple during a four-run opening frame. Her RBI single in the second staked the Lady Dragons to a 5-1 lead.

Abby Roland settled down after walking three of her first five batters faced, and scattered seven hits with 11 strikeouts in the complete-game win. She also contributed two bunt singles for second-seeded De Soto.

Brittani O’Connell struck out eight and walked eight in the loss. The junior pitcher ripped a RBI single during the fifth inning and delivered a RBI double in the seventh to finish 2-for-3.

Senior infielder Erica Inman was 2-for-4 with a double, and scored all three North County runs in her final varsity contest.

Laura Elam put the Lady Raiders ahead 1-0 with a bases-loaded single in the first. Vanessa House and C.C. Carron also picked up singles, as North County ended the campaign with a 10-13 record.