APRIL 14, 2015
Lady Dawgs an ‘improving 9-7 on season;lose to Ashland in extra innings
by Mitch Castle
The Lawrence County Softball team made the most of a Spring Break trip to Florida, even though they were only able to win two games. Head Coach, Kenny Horn said the goal of the trip wasn’t just to get wins, but to bond as a team. “We played a lot of good teams in Florida. I was pleased with how we played overall but we could have picked up a few more wins. I do like the trips for the kids. Some get to see the beach for the first time and it helps us bond as a team. That means more than wins and losses on a trip like this. We will be able to build on this as district and region tournament time rolls around.”
The Lady Dawgs went 2-3 while in Florida with wins over Glenview, IL and Oak Harbor, OH. Horn said the key now is to find a way to score more runs.
“The bottom line is, we have to find a way to score more runs. Our pitching has been great and our hitting is coming around but we have to find a way to put runs on the board.”
LC returned home from their trip and got right back into action against the 19th ranked Ashland Lady Kittens. Horn had asked his team to believe they could compete with the one loss team and they did just as he wanted.
Freshmen pitcher, Ciana Bowen pitched a complete game for Lawrence County. From the fifth inning on, she retired 12 of 13 batters.
LC took advantage of several Lady Kitten errors to take a 3-0 lead but could never hold off the pesky Ashland offense who battled back to tie the game on two occasions.
In the 10th inning, international rules kicked in with each team starting its at-bat with a base runner at second. Ashland wasted no time scoring the game clinching run as Katie Bladlock pushed a bunt just past the pitchers circle allowing the Kittens to win 6-5. Ally Marcum had 2 hits for the Lady Dawgs who fell to 7-5 on the season.
Following the teams upset bid LC returned home in seek of a win over the Belfry Lady Pirates. Not only did they earn an 11-0 victory, but freshmen pitcher Ciana Bowen threw a perfect game.
Coach Horn said the young pitchers success is something he knew would come. “Ciana has worked really hard to get to this point. She puts the time in away from team events, and that’s what it takes. She had a chance for a perfect game earlier this season and lost focus and walked a kid. As for the Belfry game she done a really good job pitching ahead of batters and making them hit her pitch. The defense played well behind her and that is what it takes to accomplish such a great moment. It was all around just a great team win and a great accomplishment for her.”
The perfect game was followed up with another stellar performance from Tosh Rose in a win over Russell. The Lady Dawgs won 3-2 and Coach Horn said Rose is crucial to how far the team will go this season. “Tosh has done a great job in the circle for us this season. Tosh is a pivotal part of our success. When we get both her and Ciana throwing up to their potential, we will be a tough out come district tourney time.”
The Lady Dawgs followed up two straight victories with two losses this past Saturday. The team lost to Rowan County 4-2 and to Huntington 9-3. Coach Horn said he’s proud of the team’s effort over the last few weeks and he can finally see the offense starting to come around. “Haleigh Peck and Addy Frazier are both hitting over .400 for us. Savannah Cyrus and Hali Young are starting to come around as well. Natalie Rice and Ally Marcum have had some big hits to this point and I expect that to continue. Our main goal is to take this one day at a time and when the tournament comes around we hope to be playing our best softball.”
The Lady Dawgs are 9-7 overall this season, and have yet to lose to a 15thRegion foe. They travel to West Carter tonight (weather pending) before playing Pike County Central and Chesapeake, OH this weekend at home.
