Road in final two contests

By RICKY COUCH

Sports Writer

The Pike Liberal Arts Lady Patriots ended the season on a very positive note by blowing out Taylor Road by a combined score of 34-1 in Thursdays double header.

The Lady Patriots used a very unforgiving defense along with aggressive base running to roll toward a very productive day of softball.

PLAS needed only four innings to put the Lady Tigers away 17-1 in game one and shut out the Lady Tigers by a 17-0 count in game two.

The Lady Patriots gained their first run of the game when Laura Wesley crossed the plate in the bottom of the first to give the Patriots a 1-0 lead. The Lady Tigers responded with their only run of the day for a very short lived 1-1 tie. After the Lady Tigers second inning run it was all Lady Patriots.

PLAS began to open up the lead with a four-run second. Many of the Lady Patriots reaching base in the inning were able to net at least two stolen bases in the inning. Katie and Mellissa Sanders were both able to steal home to account for two of the Patriot runs. By the end of the second the home team was up 5-1.

The Lady Patriots continued to pour it on with five more runs in the third. They continued to challenge the lady Tigers with Jessica Haney and Mellissa Sanders stealing home for two mare runs. Anna Fanna, Patricia Lucas and Mary Watson each batted in runs for the Lady Patriots to make the score 10-1 after three.

By the fourth the Lady Patriots were ready to put the Lady Tigers out of their misery. The Lady Patriots racked up seven more runs and end the game by the mercy rule. The Lady Patriots did so with three home runs in the final inning.

Melanie Sanders started things off with a three-run shot. Mellissa Sanders followed with a solo homer of her own. Patricia Lucas put the final nail in the coffin with a three-run shot to end the game with the Lady Patriots ran away with the 17-1 victory.

The powerful Lady Patriot offense was led by Patricia Lucas, who was three-for-three with five RBI’s and a home run and Mellissa Sanders, who was two-for-two with two RBI’s and a home run of her own.

In the second game the Lady Patriots would need only two at-bats to claim a 17-0 romp over Taylor Road. Pike used a 13-run second to successfully complete the sweep.

All four Lady Patriot runs in the first came off Taylor Road errors. In the second however, it was the Lady Patriot bats doing the damage.

Anna Fanna began the inning with a three-run homer. Mary Watson, Miranda Paul and Jessica Haney then gained RBI’s on singles to make the score 10-1. Fanna then delivered her second home run of the inning, this time a grand slam, to bring the victory closer.

Mary Watson then ended the game with a two-run home run to give the Lady Patriots the 17-0 shut out win.

Fanna led the Lady Patriots at the plate going two-for-two with two home runs and an amazing seven RBI’s. Mary Watson followed close behind going three-for-three with three RBI’s of her own.

The seniorless Patriots younger players seemed to be easing into the conversion to fast pitch very well and should be a force in the 2001 season.