Errors doom Patriots

PORTLAND — If the Jay County Softball team could have come up with a clutch hit early, and played better defense in the middle innings, the outcome could have been different.

But that wasn’t the case, as the Patriots left runners on base in all but one inning and committed four costly errors in a 14-2 defeat to Delta Thursday.

“You never know what to expect coming out in your first game,” Delta head coach Bo Jennings said. “I think our hitting, especially in the first inning, appeared like we came out tentative. But as the game progressed they got more relaxed and started to hit.”

Patriots starting pitcher Ashleigh Myers got out of trouble in the first inning after she allowed a leadoff single to Ashley Dunsmore and hit Whitney Grove with a pitch. With both runners on, Myers got Megan Grider to fly out to left, struck out Lesli Randall and sent Hannah Chalfant back to the dugout with a pop-up over second base.

In the bottom of the first with two down, the Patriots’ Renae Laux drew a walk and Stephanie Imel grounded a single down the left field line. But in the next at-bat Myers hit a shallow fly to center, ending the scoring threat and the inning.

Jay County bounced back in the bottom half of the second, but failed once again to push a runner across the plate. With one out Calah Redwine hit an infield single, and when Chalfant tried to get the force out at second on a slow roller by Nikki Ingram everyone was safe.

In her first career start, Delta freshman pitcher Kristen Buckles got herself out of the jam again, striking out Chelsea DeBoy and Jenni Chittum to hold the Patriots scoreless.

“We left runners on second and third in both the first and second innings,” Patriot coach Harold Towell said. “We talked about that, if we poke one or two across that changes the entire game.”

The Eagles did the bulk of their damage in the third inning, when they managed to put up six runs aided by a defensive breakdown on the part of the Patriots. For the inning Delta had only two hits, but Myers (0-1) surrendered four walks, and her defense didn’t help by committing three errors in the field.

“We’re not a power team that can afford to make those little mistakes time and time again, because they’re going to bite us. And they did today,” Towell said.

For the day, Delta’s Lesli Randall was 2-for-5 with a triple, two runs scored and two RBIs. Catcher Leandra Snyder had an RBI double in the second inning, scored a run in the third and had another line drive single in the fourth.

“We had several good solid hits today,” Jennings said of his Eagles. “And you can never predict how your defense is going to play this early in the season, but I was real proud of the way we played.

“Anytime you can score 14 runs, you’ve done something good,” he said.

Despite the lopsided score, the Patriots continued to battle at the plate.

In the fourth, Kristen Spahr hit a one-out single and stole second. Two batters later Ingram lined a shot into left, scoring Jay County’s first run of the season.

The home team was back at it in next inning.

Renae Laux led off the fifth with a single, but was forced out at second on a fielder’s choice by Imel. Pinch hitter Ashley Cook struck out, but with two out and Imel on second, Felisha Parr hit an RBI single to plate another run.

Parr was 2-for-3 for the day, with an RBI and a stolen base.

“The little mistakes really hurt us,” Towell said. “That’s what we’re going to go back and work on, because there’s nothing major wrong with this team, we’ve just gotta get the little things correct.”

Buckles (1-0) took the win for Delta. In four innings she surrendered one run on six hits, with three strikeouts and a walk.

Rachel Delph came on in relief of Buckles in the fifth, and gave up three hits and one earned run, while recording one strikeout in two innings of work.

Myers gave up eight runs — three earned — in her four innings on the mound. The Patriot starter had four walks and one strikeout.[[In-content Ad]]