Lady Devils squash Chemeketa, sweep twinbill
Friday, April 18, 2008 12:03 AM PDT
By Rick McCorkle
Printable version
E-mail this articleAfter last week’s lackluster performance that resulted in a doubleheader loss to Mount Hood, the Lower Columbia College softball team wanted some momentum going into Saturday’s NWAACC Crossover Tournament in Yakima.
Pitchers Carri O’Neil and Tasia Trochim dominated Chemeketa’s hitters, and the Lady Devils had a combined 21 hits in sweeping the Storm 8-0 and 6-1 in Southern Division play at Tam O’Shanter Park on Thursday.
LCC, which dropped to fourth in the latest NWAACC Coaches Poll, is now 18-6, 7-5 in league. Eighth-ranked Chemeketa slipped to 13-11 and 6-8.
“This was a good challenge for us because they (the Storm) are about equal to us in the standings. But we’re a better team than we’ve shown recently,” LCC coach Tim Mackin said. “This wasn’t an exciting doubleheader, but we plugged away and scored some runs.”
O’Neil did a masterful job keeping the Storm hitters off-balance in the opener while running her season record to 10-3 with a 1.70 earned run average. She allowed two hits — a pair of bloopers in the fourth inning — while striking out three.
LCC gave O’Neil all the run support she needed in the fourth inning when it scored four times on five hits, including RBI singles by Samantha Petrich and Camy Way, and a two-run double from Hayley Ridout.
The Devils added three runs in the fifth when Petrich stroked a one-out double and scored on a two-bagger from O’Neil. Way followed with a bloop double that moved O’Neil to third, and O’Neil later scored and Way went to third on a wild pitch. Ridout followed with a deep fly ball to center that plated Way.
The contest ended in the bottom of the sixth inning via the eight-run mercy rule when Kayla Vickaryous legged out an infield single, stole second and scampered home on a double from O’Neil.
LCC tallied 13 hits, with Petrich collecting three, including a double. O’Neil smacked two doubles and knocked in two runs, Way had a double and single, and Vickaryous added two singles and two runs.
In the nightcap, Trochim, a former Mark Morris standout, pitched six shutout innings. She won her first game of the season, dropping her earned run average more than two points.
“Tasia had four strong innings in her last outing and we told her she was getting closer to finding her timing and rhythm,” Mackin said. “She’s throwing the ball better in each outing, and the only thing that kills her is the accidental swings that turn into bloopers and bleeders, and those aren’t her fault.”
Trochim scattered six hits, including three in the seventh inning where she allowed the lone Storm run of the doubleheader. She finished with six strikeouts.
O’Neil belted a two-out, RBI double to right-center field to give LCC a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the first inning, and Petrich slapped a two-run double in the third inning for a 3-0 lead.
Petrich later scored in the inning when she went to third on a flyout by O’Neil, and scampered home when the throw from the Chemeketa right fielder sailed over the third baseman’s head.
The Devils added an insurance run in the fourth when Stina Rock smoked a 2-2 pitch about 230 feet for a solo home run off Storm hurler Tristin Armstrong.
LCC finished with eight hits, with Vickaryous collecting three, including a double.
Game 1
Lady Devils 8, Storm 0
Chemeketa 000 000 — 0 2 0
Lower Col. 004 031 — 8 13 0
Chelsea Bradely and Kaycee Hoffman; Carri O’Neil and Kassandra Myers.
Game 2
Lady Devils 5, Storm 1
Chemeketa 000 000 1 — 1 6 1
Lower Col. 103 100 x — 5 8 1
Tristin Armstrong and Kaycee Hoffman; Tasia Trochim and Kassandra Myers.
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