Riddle powers Rowan

By ROCKY STANLEY — The Independent

CANNONSBURG Sat, May 17 2008

— A mostly quiet night for Amber Riddle ended with a bomb.
Rowan County’s junior slugger crushed her state record-tying 30th career home run in the eighth inning to lift her team to a 6-5 victory and doubleheader sweep of Boyd County on Tuesday night.
Boyd County walked Riddle her first three times to the plate — once with the bases loaded — in the second game.
Riddle also grounded out in the sixth inning and came to bat in the eighth with two outs and the bases empty on a chilly night. When Boyd County pitcher Kelli Garvin got a pitch out over the plate, Riddle was waiting and connected on a rocket shot over the center-field fence.
“They told me before the game they were going to walk me,’’ said Riddle, who was 1-for-3 in the first game with a single and walk. “I think Boyd County felt sorry for me and let me hit a little bit. They pitched around me pretty good all night, except for that last one. It was perfect.’’
Home runs are exceedingly rare at Boyd County’s field, which measures about 225 feet in center, but Riddle’s blast cleared the fence with room to spare.
“A guy came over after the game and said it was only the second time anybody has hit one out of this field,’’ said Riddle, who has 11 homers this season.
Rowan County pitcher Amelia O’Hair made the one-run margin stand up by retiring Boyd County in order in the bottom of the eighth.
The Lady Lions made the defending 16th Region champs work hard for the sweep, however. Rowan County took the opener 6-4 as Boyd County left 11 runners stranded.
“Boyd County is a nice team,’’ said Lady Vikings coach Larry Slone. “They play really hard and fundamentally well. They have come a long way from last year.’’
Boyd County (13-12) grabbed a 3-0 lead in the first inning of the second game, but Rowan tied it in the second to set the stage for another tight battle.
Rowan County led 5-3 before Boyd pulled even with single runs in the fifth and sixth innings. The Lady Lions had opportunities to score more in both innings. A runner’s interference call at the plate resulted in a double play to end the fifth, and the Lady Lions had a runner thrown out trying to score on a wild pitch in the sixth.
“We had our chances,’’ said Boyd County coach Geoff Stewart. “We hit the ball hard right at them 12 or 15 times and they caught it. Six inches either way and it’s an extra-base hit.’’
Boyd County collected 18 hits in the two games, while Rowan County finished with 15.
O’Hair pitched a complete game in the nightcap as the Lady Vikings improved to 16-5. Rachael Burrows and Brittany Adams provided the offense before Riddle’s game-winning homer. Burrows went 3-for-3, including two doubles, and scored two runs. Adams singled twice and drove in three runs.
Boyd County’s Hannah Stewart had a double and two singles to lead her team’s 10-hit attack. Katie Hunter singled and scored twice — giving her five hits in the two games — while Haley Fannin had two hits in each contest.
Rowan County used a five-run fourth inning to go up 6-0 in the opener, but Boyd County responded with four runs in the bottom of the fourth. The Lady Lions had the tying runs on base in the seventh before Lady Vikings pitcher Danielle Jennings got Kaitlin Brown on a lineout to end the game.
“We played right with Rowan County for two games and they are the defending champs,’’ Stewart said. “We are right there. We just need to come up with a key play offensively or defensively.’’

ROWAN CO. 100 500 0 — 6 7 3
BOYD CO. 000 400 0 — 4 8 2
Jennings and Riddle; Garvin and Smith. W—Jennings. L—Garvin. 2B—Hunter (BC).

ROWAN CO. 030 110 01 — 6 8 2
BOYD CO. 300 011 00 — 5 10 4
O’Hair and Riddle; Caudill, Garvin (5) and Brown. W—O’Hair. L—Garvin. 2B—Burrows 2 (RC), Fannin (BC), Stewart (BC). HR—Riddle (RC).