Fort Recovery falls to Blazers

FORT RECOVERY — Giving up a big inning has hurt the Indians in each game this season.
Once the Tribe’s bats got going, the deficit was too big to overcome.
Fort Recovery High School’s softball team gave up 10 or more runs in one inning of each game Saturday in a doubleheader sweep by the National Trail Blazers.
“For us that is huge,” said first-year FRHS coach Jeff Vaughn, whose team lost 25-4 and 23-11, falling to 0-5 on the season. “Doing that in every game we’ve played we’ve let our opponents get out to a good first inning.
“There is no way we are good enough to spot (teams) 10 runs in an inning. That has been our Achilles all year.”
National Trail (3-1) drew five walks but also had eight hits as it scored 13 runs in the opening inning of game one. Seven of those runs came before the Indians were able to record an out.
Bobbi Grimes had a two-run single and Kerestin Nugent blasted an RBI triple to the gap in right center. Ariel Lee and Lexie Acton both had RBIs, chasing FRHS starter Devin Post from the game in just two-thirds of an inning.
The Blazers batted through the order twice in the first inning.
“Comes down to executing and making plays,” Vaughn said. The Indians had 13 errors between the two games. “We have a lot of room to improve.”
Post had an RBI as part of a two-run first inning for Fort Recovery, and Timmerman and Tori Vaughn drove in runs on singles during the third. The Blazers added two runs in the second inning, six in the fourth and three in the fifth.
The weather got worse during the second game, dropping about 10 degrees into the low-40s. The gusty wind coming from behind home plate stayed consistent, often changing the trajectory of pop flies to all parts of the field.
During the second inning of game two, play had to be stopped for about five minutes as snow began to fall.
Post started the second game, a move Vaughn said he hoped would help her get her confidence back. She recorded two outs in the first three batters, but struggled to get through the inning. The Blazers scored five runs on three hits.
“Game plan was to switch pitchers each time they went through the order,” Vaughn said. “Without (Post) getting it going, that shot that (idea) in the foot right away.”
Post took the loss in both games, failing to get out of the first inning in each.
Fort Recovery answered in the bottom of the frame, plating four runs to trail 5-4 after one. Timmerman had a two-run triple and scored on a throw from the outfield.
National Trail responded with an 11-run second inning to again put the game out of reach for the Indians. The Blazers had five consecutive hits — an RBI single from Kylee Aldridge, RBI double by Acton, RBI single from Aleah Hunt, a single from Kaitlyn Morgan and two-run triple from Hannah Dixon — with two outs.
The Indians’ offense came together in the second game, totaling 12 hits compared to just six in the opener. Timmerman had three of the dozen, with Logan Ranly, Kasey Vogel and Tori Vaughn each adding two.
“Second game we were more aggressive at the plate, swinging early in the count and getting good pitches to swing at,” Jeff Vaughn said.
Audra Metzger led off the second inning with a bunt single, with Ranly and Post following with back-to-back doubles to right field. Vogel also hit a double, with Timmerman and Vaughn getting hits off NTHS starter Elizabeth Glander.
“We were definitely finding holes,” Vaughn said. “Batting has been pretty consistent all year.”
Timmerman led the offense with five total hits. Vaughn recorded three, with Ranly and Metzger each adding two.