Scoring seven runs in the top of the first inning, the Logan County Lady Cougars won a district game at Russellville 14-1 Tuesday. Coach Michael Crawford’s team used 4 hits, 3 infield errors, a walk and a hit batsman to build what proved to be an insurmountable lead.
After that shaky start, Coach Greg Meacham’s Lady Panthers settled down. They got good pitching from eighth grader Macy Meacham in the middle of the game, their first batter of the game scored, and they produced baserunners in four of the five innings.
For the Lady Cougars, leadoff hitter Maddie Abbott scored 3 runs. Victoria Cates had 3 hits. Megan Griggs, Jonique Smith and Sierra Morrow added 2 hits each while Cierra Johnson, Shelby Browning and Abbott also got a hit. Courtesy runner Kayla Hazel, Smith, Wharton and Johnson each scored 2 runs. Cates and Griggs both totaled 3 RBIs with Browning and Johnson adding 2 each. Wharton and Morrow also drove in a run. Smith and Johnson doubled.
Still there were bright spots for the young Lady Panthers. Meacham retired six Lady Cougars in a row, beginning with the last out of the first inning and including setting down Logan’s 4-5-6 batters consecutively in the second inning. She had 4 strikeouts in 3 innings. She and reliever Laura Grace Marksberry were able to strike out one of Logan’s most experienced players, Rebecca Dezarn, in four straight innings.
The run came when shortstop and leadoff hitter Cierra Collins, an eighth grader, walked to start the game. Lady Cougar pitcher Shelby Milam struck out Meacham and Allison McDaniel, but the fourth straight eighth grader at the top of the RHS batting order, Tara Gilbert, was hit by a pitch. Marksberry then singled in Collins with what was to be Russellville’s only run scored in two regular season games against the crosstown rivals. Logan had won the first Clash of the Cats 10-0.
Russellville got only three more hits off Milam, a one-out double in the fifth by Gilbert, who was on base all three times she came to the plate, a leadoff single by Shea Hampton in the fourth, and a single by Meacham in the third. The Lady Panthers threatened in that inning. After Meacham’s hit, McDaniel walked and Gilbert was hit by a pitch for the second straight time to load the bases. But Milam got Marksberry to fly out to centerfield and induced a groundout to Morrow at short by Brea Croslin, a fifth grader who is the starting varsity centerfielder.
Milam struck out a quartet of Lady Panthers while walking two. Abbott made an excellent catch of a line drive by Meacham at third to end the fourth inning. Taylor Gray was on base and might have scored if the ball had gone down the line past Abbott.
Another eighth grader, Tiffany Gray, was impressive behind the plate in catching Meacham and Marksberry the entire game.
Crawford’s team won its third game in five days and moved into a second-place tie with Todd Central in 13th District standings.