Lady Bulldogs win close game
Published 9:45 pm Thursday, April 4, 2013
The King’s Fork High School softball team has been stinging from both a cold spring and a series of close losses this season, and it aimed to turn things around on Thursday in the Jazmine Foreman Memorial Tournament at Grassfield High School.
It was still cold outside, but the Lady Bulldogs’ bats heated up with 10 hits in 4-3 victory against Camden County High School out of North Carolina in the morning and 12 hits in an 11-0 win over Lake Taylor High School in the afternoon.
Sophomore shortstop Jasmine Holloman had an outstanding day at the plate, going 2-for-2 with two walks, two runs and one RBI against Camden and then going 3-for-4, with a double, one run and 2 RBIs against Lake Taylor.
She gave credit to both opposing teams as being pretty good, but she said, “we just showed up offensively.”
Holloman said she was able to contribute because she has been “putting in a lot of work towards my hitting, trying to help the team.”
Head coach Richard Froemel and senior catcher Heather Clark both commented on how offense has been the missing link in 2013.
“(If) we get that there and with our fielding and pitching, we’re going to be tough,” Froemel said.
“We’re pretty strong on defense, but we’re working on our hitting, and I think we’ll come together good for the rest of our season,” Clark said.
Doing her part to that end, Clark too had a sensational day at bat, greeting Camden with a 3-for-4 performance, scoring one run and then dominating Lake Taylor by going 2-for-4, scoring two runs, including a home run and generating four RBIs. The home run was her third of the season.
“I think Heather, our catcher, is really good,” Lady Bulldogs sophomore pitcher Sydney Wash said. “She does really well behind the plate and offensively, as well.”
Wash is one of the biggest reasons King’s Fork has such confidence on defense and she did nothing to shake that on Thursday. She threw six strikeouts and allowed six hits against Camden in the six innings played, but she was just getting warmed up.
“I’m used to playing back-to-back games, because I play tournaments, and during the second game, I actually pitch better because I’m more loose and I feel more active during the day,” she said.
Against Lake Taylor, she pitched four innings and logged 10 strikeouts, allowing only one hit. She also reclaimed her confidence as a batter, getting a hit and a run against the Lady Bruins, then going 2-for-3 with an RBI against the Lady Titans.
Junior Ashley Roten played a role in the offensive avalanche in the afternoon game, going 2-for-2 with a run and an RBI. Freshman Kay’Lee Justice was 1-for-2 with a double and an RBI and junior Kayla Harbin had a triple.
Both games were shortened because they were given time allotments to keep the event on a schedule. King’s Fork (4-4, 2-4) will visit Hickory High School on Monday.