Clarke Softball Rallies To Beat Colonels

Posted: March 25, 2013
By ROBERT STOCKS
The Winchester Star

BERRYVILLE —The silver lining in Clarke County softball coach Susan Grubbs’ 25th season with the program might be that her veteran team can find ways to win without one of its captains in the lineup.

With seniors Helen Good, Megan Rion and Olivia Gore providing plenty of offense, Carrie Gibson and Sarah Miller combined for a solid performance in the pitcher’s circle in a 6-4 non-district victory over James Wood at Grubbs Field on Saturday.

The Eagles’ honored about 40 former players and assistant coaches in Grubbs’ 25 seasons before Saturday’s game, and the Eagles rallied to beat the Colonels with Miller picking up her second victory less than 24 hours after getting a win over Warren County Friday night.

Although Miller started in a victory over Warren County the night before, the Eagles’ sophomore needed to enter the game in relief after James Wood clean-up hitter Charlotte Viands blasted a sharply-hit two hopper off Gibson’s knee in the top of the third inning.

Miller (2-0) pitched the final 42/3 innings, allowing just five hits and two unearned runs in the top of the seventh. She struck out four.

“Coach Grubbs told me when she told me I was on the [varsity] team that I always needed to be ready to pitch at any moment and I just took that in effect today,” said Miller, who has stepped in with quality innings with senior starting pitcher Sarah Herndon out with a hand injury. “I did a good job pitching [Friday] night so I just wanted to keep that going into [Saturday].”

Miller entered the game with James Wood leading 2-1 after scoring single runs off Gibson in both the first and second innings.

Gibson, who struck out three, was able to walk off with a noticeable limp after taking a rocket shot from Viands off her knee.

With Viands on first and no outs, James Wood’s Jessy Shipman reached on an error, but Miller struck out Laura Gates for the second out. After Tori Armel singled to load the bases with two outs, Miller got Caitlin Hickey to ground out to end the inning.

The Eagles (3-1) took control by sending nine batters to the plate in the bottom of the third against Armel — who was making her first varsity start.

Armel (0-1) hit Clarke No. 3 batter Olivia Gore with a pitch that smacked the side of her helmet to start the inning, bringing clean-up hitter Helen Good to the plate.

Good drilled a fastball high into the gap in left-center field for a towering, two-run homer that cleared the fence by just a few feet to put Clarke County ahead 3-2.

As it turns out, Good had a little pressure on her to put the bat on the ball — and she certainly made that happen.

“Actually it was a hit-and-run so I had to swing,” said Good, who went 2 for 4 with a stolen base. “[Coach Grubbs] made me swing and it was outside and I just drove it and pulled it a little bit — but I didn’t get all of it.”

Clarke’s Becky Smith and Megan Rion each added RBI singles in the inning to put the Eagles ahead 5-2.

In the next inning, Gore — who went 2 for 4 with two runs scored — led off the inning with a double. Good followed and flew out to right field, but Gore tagged on the fly ball and scored after an errant throw to third to extend the Eagles’ lead to 6-2.

James Wood (0-3) had 12 hits but stranded 10 runners on base. The Colonels had the bases loaded in both the third and fifth innings and came up empty each time.

In the fifth inning, Shipman had an infield single, Gates reached on a fielder’s choice and then Armel reached on an infield single to load the bases with two outs.

Miller got out of the jam by striking out pinch-hitter McKenzie Garrett to end the threat.

Miller also retired the Colonels in order in the sixth, getting a great defensive play by at third by Good, who snared a sharply-hit line drive by Hayley Whitacre for the first out of the inning.

The Colonels threatened in the top of the seventh, getting a lead-off walk from Largent (2 for 4), who scored on Becky Smith’s second throwing error to first in the inning.

Pinch-hitter Sara Hoover had an RBI groundout to cut Clarke’s lead to 6-4 with one out, but Miller struck out Armel for the second out and then got pinch-hitter Whitney Dick to ground out to third to end it.

James Wood coach Ted McDaniel said his team has to find ways to get timely hits with runners in scoring position.

“We had the bases loaded twice and couldn’t score,” McDaniel said. “We’ve got to do better than that. It’s just a lack of execution.”

In addition to stranding 10 runners on base, the Colonels also had a runner gunned down at the plate in the first inning.

Viands, who went 3 for 4 with a run, singled between third and short, and Largent was waved home by the Colonels third-base coach, but Eagles left fielder Megan Rion threw her out at home plate to end the inning.

Grubbs said Herndon might return to the lineup in about two weeks after tearing ligaments in her non-throwing hand in the team’s first practice, but she said Miller stepped up against Warren County Friday night and then in relief against James Wood Saturday.

“Sarah pitched a really good game against Warren and we lost to them the first time,” said Grubbs, who got the 297th victory of her career Saturday. “She’s got good movement and she’s really come on stepping in as a sophomore. I think it’s nice that other girls are stepping in. We have a lot of experience and talent not only with our starters which is good.”

With about 40 former players and assistants showing up for Saturday’s reunion game, Grubbs said one of her former players came from as far away as Utah for Saturday’s alumni game which had a luncheon following the game at Clarke County High School.

“We had some girls that came in and some I hadn’t seen since they graduated,” Grubbs said. “It’s nice for them to come back and we had a great turnout and that’s what it’s all about — our program. For some of them [who have moved out of the area], it’s probably the first time they’ve seen us play [since they graduated].”

— Contact Robert Stocks at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.