Pitching lifts Hailey softball team
"Small ball" produces runs
Pitching/catching is the name of the game
in prep fast-pitch softball. Being able to manufacture runs and play defense are
also important attributes in low-scoring games.
Wood River High School’s varsity softball
team went up and down the checklist and accomplished all those things in
stretching its current winning streak to five games last week.
Second baseman Kelly Haisley runs
the bases in a 3-1 victory over the Jerome Tigers Tuesday.
Coach Chris Cey’s Wolverines (8-1) started
their home season with four victories—8-6 and 10-0 over the Jerome Tigers last
Tuesday, and 3-1 and 6-2 in a first-time clash against the Century Diamondbacks
Thursday.
The Wolverines are now 54-23 at home over
seven seasons.
Wood River’s pitching, with senior Aubrey
Kirtley and junior Chandin Persaud, was just terrific. In 26 innings of work
last week, the pair allowed a grand total of three free passes—two walks, one
hit batsman.
While this year’s Wood River team doesn’t
seem to have the run-producing ability as last year’s district championship
squad that averaged 10.4 runs per game, it doesn’t mean the Wolverines can’t
produce runs.
The Hailey girls just play "small ball."
They leg out infield hits, bunt prolifically and run the bases with abandon to
get into scoring position. You just don’t need many runs when you’re allowing
only 2.6 runs a game.
Junior varsity catcher Ally Sherbine
gets ready for a play at the plate
Coach Cey said, "We’ve been talking for
several years about the importance of manufacturing runs, but this group is the
first that has really taken to it. And we just have good pitching and good
defense."
Kirtley’s leadership in the pitching
circle and at the plate was very important in the 8-6 win over Jerome.
Wood River grabbed a 5-0 lead with a
five-run third. Kelly Haisley (2 hits) led off with a single, Tiffany Wheeler
added an RBI single, Joni Chatterton (2 hits) ripped a double, then Kirtley (2
hits, 2 runs) and Emily Smith (2 hits) chipped in RBI singles.
Jerome roughed up Kirtley for six runs in
the fourth, forcing the Wood River ace to throw 38 pitches in the frame. But she
settled down and retired the final 10 Tigers. Meanwhile Wood River pushed across
the decisive three runs in the home fifth—Kirtley starting it with a leadoff
single and Smith adding another RBI hit.
Wood River out-hit Jerome 11-7.
In the nightcap, Persaud tossed a
five-inning, one-hit shutout. She walked only one batter. Jerome’s pitchers had
a tough time, walking 11.
Singles by Chatterton (3 walks, 2 runs)
and Kirtley (2 hits) opened Wood River’s four-run third. Other contributors in
the 10-0 win included Ashley Washburn (2 hits, 2 runs) and shortstop Molly
Meyers (2 runs).
Century’s Diamondbacks came to Hailey with
the reputation of being a team that routinely qualifies for the State 4A
tournament. They left with questions about their competitiveness—and respect for
Wood River.
Kirtley and Persaud, throwing strikes,
tamed the Diamondbacks with help from the strong Hailey defense, which committed
only two errors all day. "Both of our pitchers picked up their velocity today,"
said Cey.
In the opener, Kirtley (97 pitches, 7
hits, 1 walk, 4 Ks) enticed eight ground-ball outs and allowed only one runner
past second. Always ahead on the count, Kirtley (4-1) used a wicked change-up
for a strikeout pitch down the homestretch.
Left fielder Washburn gloved a
second-inning line drive and quickly threw to first for a double play. Shortstop
Meyers made another strong play with a diving catch in the fifth.
In the third, Wood River went ahead 1-0 on
a bunt single by Haisley, a sacrifice bunt by Wheeler and a two-out RBI double
by Chatterton.
A leadoff infield single by third baseman
Camey Anderson (2 hits) and some adventurous base-running produced the second
run—Anderson scampering home on a wild pitch.
In the fifth Washburn legged out an
infield hit and dashed all the way to third base on Wheeler’s sacrifice bunt.
She came home on an infield error of Chatterton’s batted ball.
Control pitcher Persaud (4-0) was in
command in the nightcap, throwing 92 pitches, 71 for strikes. She scattered
eight hits, walked none, whiffed four and escaped a scary two-out, bases-loaded
jam in the sixth.
Although Century out-hit Wood River 15-10
over the two games, the Wolverines were more opportunistic.
Anderson delivered a two-out RBI single in
the first after walks to Wheeler and Chatterton. With Wolverines on the corners
in the third, Chatterton wisely got herself into a pickle between first and
second—and Wheeler scampered home from third.
The Hailey girls added two unearned runs
in the fourth for a 4-1 lead, Washburn ripping an RBI single. In the sixth,
two-out hits by Persaud and Haisley (double) stretched it to 6-2. Then Persaud
retired the Diamondbacks 1-2-3 in the seventh.
Wood River (1-0 league) resumed its
Sawtooth Central Idaho Conference slate Tuesday at Kimberly, then the Wolverines
entertain Burley Thursday, April 17 and play a big SCIC twinbill at Buhl (7-1)
Saturday.