Late rally by Tribe not enough (04/05/05)

FORT RECOVERY — The game got interesting in the bottom of the seventh inning. But the Indians simply didn’t get the bats going early enough.

Fort Recovery’s softball team scored twice in its final at bat, but couldn’t get Tiff Gaerke home from third base with the tying run in a 3-2 loss to the undefeated St. Mary’s Memorial Roughriders Monday.

“We had one hit in the second inning and that was it until the seventh,” said FRHS coach Marie Osterholt, whose team is now 1-2 after back-to-back one-run losses. “I don’t know what they’re thinking when they’re out there ... They need to play (with confidence). We need to not be intimidated by anybody because we’re just as good as anybody we play.”

The Tribe trailed 3-0 heading to the bottom of the seventh inning, with their only hit coming from senior Krystal Rammel. Renee Evers finally ended the four-inning hitless stretch by leading off the frame with an infield single.

But, Memorial pitcher Jessica Enderud got Rammel to ground out to third baseman Bailey Enderud and then struck out Brenda Rindler.

Kristen Schwieterman kept Fort Recovery alive by ripping an RBI single to left field, and then Gaerke brought the Indians back to life. After striking out in each of her first two at bats the sophomore found a pitch she liked and slammed it over Ashley Irish’s head in left field. She rolled all the way to third base with a triple, where she waited as the tying run.

That was as far as she would get, however, as Alyssa Tobe grounded back to Jessica Enderud to end the game.

Roughrider coach Sue Grothause said despite the seventh inning, she was happy with the way Enderud — seven innings, eight strikeouts — battled the Tribe offense.

“Jessica did a nice job pitching,” she said. “She had them off a little bit. I’ve been pleased with what she’s done so far.

“If we keep playing defense, we’re going to win a lot of ball games.”

Fort Recovery got in its 3-0 hole as it committed four errors, including a pair of costly mistakes in the fourth inning.

With one out, No. 2 hitter Toya Anderson of Memorial crushed a double to left field. Bailey Enderud followed with a single to left, where the ball then went under Kelsie Will’s glove allowing Anderson to score.

Gaerke struck out Brittany Hawk for the second out, but then a Rachel Ginter grounder skidded under shortstop Kristen Schwieterman’s glove. The second error of the inning allowed Enderud to score for the 2-0 lead.

“You have to make the defensive plays,” said Osterholt. “Every game we play is going to be a close game. Every team we play is good. We’re just as good, but we have to make every play.”

“We told the kids if we could keep the ball in play and make them make mistakes (we would have a chance),” added Grothause. “We did that tonight.”

The other run for the Roughriders (4-0) came in the top of the seventh. Jessica Enderud hit a one-out double over Will’s head in left, and pinch hitter Stephanie Platt followed with an RBI single to right field.

Gaerke took the loss for the Tribe allowing three runs — one earned — on four hits.[[In-content Ad]]