Parkersburg South prevails over PHS, 9-8
Trending
PARKERSBURG -- Taylor Lamp knocked in pinch-runner Brylee Hatcher in the top of the 10th inning here Tuesday night at Worthington Field as visiting Parkersburg South slipped past rival Parkersburg, 9-8, in a near three hour marathon as the Patriots split the season series.
Lamp recorded four outs before being chased in the second. She was relieved by Lexi Dellinger, who went 8 2-3 innings and recorded eight strikeouts to earn the mound triumph.
"It was huge to split with PHS and Ripley. We're peaking at the right time with sectionals next week," admitted South head coach Tim Burch, whose 12-10 club returns to action at 7 p.m. today at John Marshall.
The coach added that Dellinger "really pitched well tonight and showed great poise for a freshman. Taylor Lamp and Shawnee Eddy were clutch in pressure situations at the plate. Overall, it was a great win against a very good PHS softball team. I'm very proud of our program."
Big Red center fielder Madison Marks, who later filled in at catcher when Jillian Nay left injured, put the hosts ahead 1-0 when she knocked in Kisten Roberts for the game's first run.
Brenna Miller walked to open the red and white second.. Roberts, who finished 4 for 6, singled and after Nay coaxed a pass from Lamp, the bases were loaded. Dellinger, though, allowed a three-run double to losing pitcher Kylie Conley as PHS had all the momentum with a 4-0 lead.
PSHS No. 9 hitter Brooklin Whitehead opened the third with a double and scored on Becca Beatty's three-bagger. Lamp followed with an RBI knock and Kara Snyder later added an RBI groundout to make it 4-3.
The Patriots took their first lead in the fifth. Lamp singled and scored on Kassidy Trimble's triple. Trimble crossed to make it 5-4 after Snyder executed a safety squeeze.
Parkersburg responded with two of its own in the last of the fifth. Makailyn Munday singled and Haylee Williams followed with a hit. After Miller walked to load the bases, No. 9 hitter Lilly Boice drew a base on balls, which scored pinch-runner Brenna Inboden. Roberts then had a run-scoring single to right, but Dellinger got the final two outs as the Big Reds left the bases loaded just like the first inning.
South catcher Alicia Lemus was lifted for Hatcher after she walked to start the sixth. Alison Marcum then sacrificed, but Conley fanned Emma Kuhl for the second out. However, Whitehead then drew a free pass and went to second on indifference. Beatty then came through with an RBI single to center and an error allowed Whitehead to score for a 7-6 advantage.
Eddy's RBI double to right plated pinch-runner Sianne Daniels, who ran after Snyder reached on a single, to give the visitors an insurance tally in the seventh.
PHS (7-12) was able to force extra innings when Marks hit a shot down the left-field line for a two-run double that plated Boice and Roberts, who had previously singled and doubled.
In the 10th, pinch-hitter Katelyn Jones reached on an error and was replaced at first by Hatcher, who raced home for what proved to be the game-winning run thanks to Lamp's RBI single to center.
"We had plenty of opportunities and moved kids in and out," said PHS boss Jason Roberts, whose team is slated to play on Friday and Saturday in the Mountain State Athletic Conference tournament. "I lost my catcher. Jillian's been battling an elbow and shoulder injury the last couple weeks. She's a tough, tough kid and has done a great job for us.
"Whenever she bows out your know she's injured. She had to come out and there were some big at-bats that it would've been nice to have her 100 percent because she's been batting above .400 all year. It is what it is. You got to keep the kids healthy."
Contact Jay Bennett at jbennett@newsandsentinel.com