Behind a 13-hit barrage and six innings of shutout pitching by Jenna Roach, the Lady Tigers took a mighty step toward a potential District 13-5A softball championship with an 8-3 rout of Bryan on Friday night at Lady Tiger Field.
The Lady Tigers (19-5 overall, 6-1 13-5A) avenged their only district loss and are tied with College Station A&M Consolidated for the top spot in the league standings. Bryan dipped to 15-10 and 5-2.
A four-run first and another score in the second along with a dazzling array of defensive gems gave the Lady Tigers the ability to breathe easier as they marched to a vital victory.
“(Those four runs) took the pressure off,” Belton first-year coach Matt Blackburn said. “I couldn’t have scripted it any better.”
Belton sent all nine of its batters to the plate in the first inning against Bryan’s Michelle Stratta. The first four made the circuit back home.
Kalee Young stuck a bases-loaded double over center fielder Kristin Lara to drive in Jessica Whitley and Skylor Alford to put the Lady Tigers on the board.
“We knew we needed this win,” said Young, who has been on an offensive tear throughout district. “I just stay back and wait for a good pitch. We prepared well.”
An illegal pitch scored Brianna Bozon from third and Cat Curry rifled a single to right-center to bring home Young for a 4-0 lead.
Back-to-back doubles with two outs in the second led to the Lady Tigers’ fifth run. Bozon drilled a shot off the left-field fence and Young followed with a double to the right-center gap.
The scattered instances of a possible Lady Viking uprising were met with stellar defensive plays. With Stratta at first, Jennifer Kasper ripped a hit to left-center. Left fielder Victoria Alcozer cut off the ball in the gap, spun and fired a perfect one-hopper to Bozon at third to get Stratta and escape the inning.
At shortstop, Whitley turned several potentially difficult plays into routine outs.
“That’s what helped establish us,” Blackburn said. “Our defensive effort gave confidence to Jenna to throw because she knew everyone else would do what it takes.
“I moved the outfield back. We’ll give them a single, but we didn’t want to give them more than that. The left side of the field was spectacular.”
Bryan threatened in the fifth, but the Lady Tigers turned a critical double play, with Bozon getting hitter Courtney Ford on the groundout and first baseman Curry zipping it to Young behind the plate to gun down courtesy runner Brandi Garcia as she tried to score.
Belton added two runs with two outs in the fifth to go up 7-0. Curry reached on an error and was followed by three singles. KC Warehime looped a single to center and Jasmin Maldonado and Alcozer added run-scoring hits.
Alford led off the sixth with a single and eventually scored the Lady Tigers’ final run. Alford scored from third on a bases-loaded fielder’s choice by Curry.
“This is my last year in the sport and the seniors want to be leaving with a district championship,” said Alford, who along with Bozon cranked out three hits. “We just went into this one like every other game at bat. We want to drive it.”
Roach (10-3) yielded four hits and neither struck out not walked a batter in six innings. Stratta went the distance, fanning two and walking none.
Brynne Steger came on to close out the game in the seventh for Belton. The Lady Vikings got to her for three runs, including a run-scoring double by Ashley Lara.
The Lady Tigers have five district games left, but they like where they are now.
“We won’t relax,” Alford said. “Our coach keeps us on our toes."
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