Charles Henderson's varsity softball team looked the part Thursday.

The Trojans played together, competed for seven innings and supported each other. &uot;We looked like a team tonight,&uot; CHHS coach Steve Haug said.

They did not win, but the Trojans showed positive progress in an 8-1 loss to a strong Andalusia team.

&uot;I feel much better about the future of this team than I did two days ago,&uot; Haug said. &uot;They stuck together. Our pitching was better, our attitude was better. We gave up some early runs and held them there. We were down 7-1 early and they only got one more.&uot;

Plus, the Trojans (0-3) broke their scoreless streak. After shutouts against Northview and Enterprise, senior Heather Snell scored in the second inning. &uot;Eden Stamey got her to third and Tabitha Weed or Denise Cain drove her in. Denise had a couple big hits tonight,&uot; the coach said.

The Trojans made much better contact at the plate throughout the game.

&uot;We hit some ‘at-'ems' tonight,&uot; he said. &uot;We had several hard shots right at people. I'll take those, though. They'll fall eventually.&uot;

CHHS threatened to score in the fifth and sixth innings. But a fine throw from an Andalusia outfielder got a Trojan runner at the plate in the fifth.

&uot;Down 7-1 you've got to take some chances,&uot; Haug said. &uot;That girl made a perfect throw to save a run.&uot;

A line drive directly at the first baseman led to an easy double play that ended the threat in the sixth.

The Trojans play in their own tournament this weekend at the Sportsplex, beginning today against Curry. It's a tourney featuring 10 varsity and six junior varsity teams.