Big innings stake Marion to a pair of wins

Big innings stake Marion to a pair of wins

Marion captures second and third straight league wins in West Memphis

Sports Editor

A pair of monster offensive innings gave Marion enough cushion to sweep a doubleheader against West Memphis yesterday afternoon.

The Lady Pats (12-4 overall, 5-3 7A/6A-East) hit the Lady Blue Devils (1-10 overall, 0-8 7A/6A-East) with a 19-run second inning in a 20-0 win in the lid-lifter, before striking for 15 runs in the bottom of the first in the nightcap.

Marion won the second game 18-1 at Tilden Rodgers Park. Each contest was a three-inning, runrule- shortened decision.

“I thought we swung the bat well, we were able to make some adjustments that we had to make, too,” said veteran Marion head coach David Horton. “We were able to keep our focus from start to finish and get two big conference wins.”

Marion’s offensive output surely caught the eye as the Lady Pats came up with those 38 runs and 27 hits combined, but the starting pitching performances of Mabry Watson and Hope Phipps were perhaps more impressive.

Watson, a senior, started the first contest and retired all nine batters that she faced in order, while striking out seven of those hitters. That mark was good for a three-inning perfect game.

In game 2, Phipps got the ball and allowed a firstinning double to Kassidy Pardy, a third-inning single to Reagan Rushing, as well as a walk to Blakely Brawner. Brawner would score on Rushing’s single for the lone West Memphis tally of the day.

“At that point, we’re trying to do little things and get better in certain situations,” said West Memphis head coach Matt Mink.

“That’ll help us moving forward because we play again on Thursday and Friday.”

Watson and Phipps each earned the pitching victory for Marion.

“I thought both of our pitchers threw the ball really well,” Horton added. “That’s one of the better 6A pitchers that we’ve seen, and I think that’ll set us up for our 7A games,” Mink explained. “We’ll see someone of that caliber and seeing her (Watson) should help make us better.”

While Marion’s pitching hand-cuffed West Memphis from the word go, the Lady Pat offense wasn’t quite as receptive early on.

Marion scored a run in the top of the first of the opener, an RBI single by Morgan Weaver (3-3, 2 runs scored, stolen base, 3 RBI), and led 1-0 entering the second stanza.

Once there, Marion found its bearings. The Lady Pats marched 24 batters to the plate in the second, scoring those 19 runs on 14 hits, while also taking advantage of 3 West Memphis errors.

The big hits in the second saw Watson (2-3, 3 runs, 4 RBI, stolen base) help her own cause by crushing a three-run home run to leftcenter field with nobody out for a 4-0 lead.

The lead became 9-0 when Haley Cook (1-1, 2 runs, 2 RBI) stroked a tworun double into the gap to score Micah Tolleson (3-4, 2 runs, RBI) and Raygan Shelton (3-4, 2 runs, RBI, stolen base).

Senior centerfielder Kristin Bolton (1-2, 3 runs scored, 3 RBI) knocked in Cook and McKenzie Shirley (1-2, 2 runs) in the same inning with a tworun triple. Marion had 17 hits in the opener, getting one from every starter, as well as three reserves.

The Lady Pats kept rolling right into the second game. Phipps worked around Pardy’s double in the top of the first and Watson (1-1, home run, 3 RBI, stolen base, 2 runs) destroyed a 3-2 pitch off of the scoreboard at Tilden Rodgers Park for a 1-0 lead with her second leadoff home run of the season. Watson’s dinger sparked a run the first 15 consecutive Lady Pats reaching base, which accounted for 12 runs.

That inning played host to nine Marion hits, four West Memphis errors, as well as six walks issued and Marion led 15-0 after the first inning.

In the second game, every Marion starter reached base and scored, while Shelton went 2-2 with 2 runs and RBI, Phipps going 2-3, with 2 runs and

By Chuck Livingston