LADY BUCCS HONOR SENIORS WITH 6-4 WIN...
The Covington Lady Buccs earned a hard-fought 6-4 win over Bethel on "Senior Night".
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| Senior Jessica Shrout pitches for Covington. |
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May 6, 2008 – COVINGTON
The Covington Lady Buccs honored the three seniors prior to the CCC match-up with Bethel and then made the game even more memorable with a 6-4 victory.
"This was a good win for us," said Covington coach Dean Denlinger. "They (Bethel) are a good hitting team. They hit the ball well tonight and we had to make some plays to get a win."
Bethel had nine total hits off of Covington's two pitchers, Jessica Shrout and Chloe Shell.
But the Lady Buccs made some big defensive plays despite committing three errors.
"We had some errors we should have avoided, but we also had some big defensive plays that prevented runs," Denlinger said. "Erin Christian has a heck of a night behind the plate."
Christian threw out two base runners and tagged out a Bethel runner at home to prevent a run in the second inning.
"That was a big out," said Denlinger. "Erin did a great job of blocking the plate and making the tag."
By then Covington had a 2-0 lead after scoring two runs in the first inning. The Lady Buccs then added another run in the bottom of the second for a 3-1 lead.
But Bethel scored a run in the third and tied the score with two runs in the fourth.
But the damage could have been much worse for Covington as Bethel left the bases loaded in the fourth.
"We dodged a bullet there," said Denlinger. "We were fortunate to get out of that inning with a 3-3 tie."
Freshman Chloe Shell entered the game in the fifth inning in relief of Shrout and held Bethel to just two hits the rest of the way.
Meanwhile, Covington scored two runs in the fifth and another in the sixth to put the game away.
Emily Hicks had a big night at the plate as she recorded three of Covington's eight hits on the afternoon. Hicks went 3-for-3 with an RBI, two runs scored and a stolen base.
"Emily had an outstanding game," praised Denlinger. "She made a lot happen out there tonight. She had one slap and two drags for hits and she did an outstanding job of base running."
The night Hicks had was even more impressive considering she came off the bench to do it.
"She earned this start," Denlinger continued. "She's worked very hard in practice."
Christian recorded two RBI on the afternoon, while Carole Bayse, Michelle Leistner and Chloe Shell each recorded one RBI. Shell and Leistner also doubled for Covington.
The victory improves Covington's record to 13-8 overall and 6-4 in conference play.
The Lady Buccs host National Trail tomorrow night.
Scoring by Innings:
Bethel ............0...0...1...2...0...1...0 - 4 .. 9 .. 2
Covington .....2...1...0...0...2...1...x - 6 .. 8 .. 3
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