Loyd Star Lady Hornets surge past Mize
Published 11:37 pm Thursday, March 30, 2017
After the 11-1 victory Thursday night against the Mize Tigers, head coach Jan Delaughter made her Loyd Star Lady Hornets runs sprint across the outfield after the game for mistakes she did not particularly like.
Even after the dominating victory, there’s still much to improve on to get better in the eyes of Delaughter.
“We had a girl that didn’t do what she was supposed to do,” Delaughter said. “We didn’t do some things that we did in practice earlier. Maybe running will help them remember for next time.”
Despite the small errors, the Loyd Star Lady Hornets used a strong offensive performance from the lineup and won easily over Mize 11-1.
The win keeps the Lady Hornets undefeated at 14-0 and they continue to show no signs of slowing down.
“The girls have really been hitting the ball well lately,” Delaughter said. “Us hitting well really helped us with this win. We were also really good on defense. We’re playing well on defense and we’re hitting. That’s the key to winning.”
The Lady Hornets jumped out quickly in the first inning by scoring three runs to take the early 3-0 lead.
Mize would get their only run of the game in the second inning with an RBI single from sophomore Hannah Fewell to center field and cut the deficit to 3-1.
It would be all Loyd Star from there on out as they combined to score eight runs in the final three innings to end the game at 11-1 in five innings.
Senior pitcher Makenzie Smith was dominant once again as she moved her record as a starter to 14-0. Smith pitched the complete five innings, giving up one earned run on one hit, one walk and struck out seven batters in the process.
Smith has started every game this season for the Lady Hornets, but this is nothing new to her as she started every game last season as well.
“I was going to give her a break tonight, but she didn’t want it. She wanted to pitch,” Delaughter said. “She always wants to pitch and she always wants the ball.”
Delaughter wants to give Smith a break next week in order for her to be fresh for the Loyd Star tournament next weekend.
Behind the great pitching performance, the Lady Hornets gave plenty of run support with a strong performance at the plate. Loyd Star totaled 11 runs on 10 hits for the night.
Leading the offensive charge for the Lady Hornets was Johnna Norman, who went 2-for-2 at the plate with two RBIs on the night. Marley Poole also had two RBIs, going 1-for-2 at the plate. Megan Poole, Shelby Smith, Carly Beth Wallace and Lesley Walker each had one RBI to round out the scoring.
Braelyn Boykin took the loss on the mound for Mize, pitching 4.2 innings and giving up nine earned runs on 10 hits, three walks and striking out one batter.
The Lady Hornets have impressed all season long with a 14-0 record more than halfway through the season, but staying perfect is not something they’re focused on.
“We never even mention it. We never bring it up,” Delaughter said about the undefeated start. “We just take one game at a time and we don’t even mention it.”
More News - Main
-
Polls
Loading ...-
-