Published: July 13, 2008 10:55 pm            

Success split for teams at state tourney

FLATWOODS — While the Russell-Flatwoods 11- and 12-year-old team continued to show its dominance in pool play of the 2008 Kentucky Little League Softball Tournament, the 10- and 11-year-old squad dug an early hole.

Russell’s 11- and 12-year-old group defeated East Ridge 11-0 in the first round of pool play and led Butler County 6-3 in the seventh inning on Sunday night in Flatwoods. Pool play continues until Tuesday.

Russell’s 10- and 11-year-old girls ran into a tough opponent in their first game of the double-elimination tournament, losing to North Oldham, 35-2.

North Oldham defeated Jackson County, 33-0, in the first round on Saturday. It scored 11 runs in the first inning against Russell.

Russell pitcher Kayla Odne encountered control issues early. She walked nine batters in the first inning, but North Oldham did substantial damage with its bats later in the game.

Six North Oldham players scored at least four runs. Bailey Hill crossed home plate six times. Hill also added three hits and five RBIs to contribute to the offensive effort.

Russell used five pitchers, but could not find an answer for a solid-hitting North Oldham team.

Russell scored in the second inning when Rebecca Thompson stole home on a heads-up play. Russell then trailed 20-1.

North Oldham found another offensive weapon in Kaitlan Brooks, who doubled in the second, singled in the third and tripled in the fourth inning. She scored five times and drove in seven runs. North Oldham batted around in every inning.

Russell did not give in, though, and that was indicative in the fourth inning when Haley Smith gave an all-out effort to score a run for her team, which trailed 35-1 at the time.

Russell’s Cassie Woolley walked on a wild pitch and Smith hustled in from third base. She slid into home safely, but torqued her ankle against the dirt surrounding home plate, injuring and possibly breaking her ankle or lower leg. Smith was taken away in an ambulance as fans applauded her efforts.

Smith also accounted for Russell’s only hit of the game, an infield single down the third base line.

Russell-Flatwoods will try to avoid elimination when it plays against Jackson County today at 3 p.m.

The South Shore 9- and 10-year-old all stars will also attempt to avoid elimination.

South Shore eliminated Olive Hill on Sunday, winning 18-10. It used a five-run fourth inning and a seven-run fifth inning to put Olive Hill away.

Sam Mitchell led South Shore with a nice performance on the mound. She struck out 10 batters and tossed all six innings.

Mitchell was also one of four South Shore players to score three runs in the game. The others were Micah Leslie, Alex Haselip and Madison Greene. Leslie went 4-for-4 with four singles.

Patience Jones smacked a two-run double and Alyssa Shelton hit a two-run single in the fifth inning for Olive Hill, but it was not enough to mount a serious comeback threat.

South Shore will face North Oldham today at 5 p.m., the same team it lost to on Saturday, 14-10.



SOUTH SHORE 303 570 — 18 8 2

OLIVE HILL 202 150 — 10 7 5

Mitchell and Haselip; Brown and Adkins. W—Mitchell. L—Brown. 2B—South Shore, Mitchell, Clark; Olive Hill, Jones, Thornsberry. 3B—Olive Hill, Jones.

N OLDHAM (11)97 8 — 35 14 2

RU-FLATWOODS 010 1 — 2 1 8

Hill, Stringfellow (3), Galvan (4) and Galvan, Henderson (4); Odne, Kazee (2), Thompson (3), Abul-Khoudoud (4), Spence (4) and Wells, Smith (3). 2B—North Oldham, Hill, Brooks. 3B—North Oldham, Reinbold, Brooks, Stringfellow.

        

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