SOFTBALL: Lady Indians fall to Waltonville, Mt. Vernon
Du Quoin couldn't come up with enough offense to win either game at Monday's Mt. Vernon tournament, falling 6-2 to Waltonville before dropping the nightcap to the Lady Rams, 6-5.
"Well it didn't go as planned tonight," said DHS head coach Jason James. "We are really struggling at the plate right now. We are not taking the things we are working on in the cage to the field. We continue to lunge forward or just use are arms, we are not hitting with any power."
"It is early in the season and I know those are fixable things. We just have to have an idea on how they are pitching us and make adjustments and I am confident we will make those changes."
The Lady Indians were without Mackenzie Jackson and Grace Haney, both of whom missed the trip to Mt. Vernon due to illness.
Du Quoin had eight hits against Waltonville, but also stranded eight runners on base, including three in the first inning when they loaded the bases but came up empty.
Waltonville got on top 1-0 on an RBI base hit by Jessi Eubanks in the top of the second, then the Lady Indians grabbed a 2-1 lead in the bottom of the inning on RBI hits by Amber Williams and Alaina Caldwell.
Du Quoin stopped there, however, while the Lady Spartans kept tacking on.
Hannah Witler and Gretchen Witler both tripled in a two-run third for Waltonville against DHS starter Jordyn Bullar, who lasted three innings and gave up three earned runs on four hits and a walk with one strikeout.
Marisa Ferguson took over in the circle after that for Du Quoin, but didn't fare much better. H. Witler added her second triple of the game in the sixth, driving in two to make it 5-2.
Two Lady Indians errors allowed an insurance run to score for the Lady Spartans in the seventh.
Caldwell (1-4, RBI), Bullar (1-4), Ferguson (2-3), Williams (1-3, R, RBI, 3B), Afton Robinson (2-4) and Sydney Lewis (1-3) had hits for the Lady Indians in the loss to Waltonville.
Du Quoin had a lead against Mt. Vernon slip away, too, while stranding seven runners on base. The Lady Rams had three runs on three hits, a walk and an error in the bottom of the first inning against pitcher Emily Born, but the Lady Indians found some life in the top of the third.
Caldwell and Kat Robison singled to start the rally, and Bullar (single) and Lewis (two-run double) added RBIs in a four-run inning for Du Quoin.
It was Mt. Vernon's turn for a comeback in the bottom of the fifth inning, as a double, a triple, and an error led to two runs and a 5-4 lead.
The Lady Indians tied it up soon thereafter on Caldwell's RBI single in the top of the sixth, but again, Mt. Vernon answered. The Lady Rams took advantage of an error to plate the go-ahead - and eventual game-winning - tally.
Born worked two-plus innings, allowing no earned runs on three hits and three walks with two strikeouts. Ferguson tossed the final four innings, giving up one earned run on five hits while fanning four.
Caldwell (3-4, R, RBI), Robison (2-4, R), Bullar (1-4, R, RBI), Lewis (2-4, R, 2 RBI) and Williams (1-3) had hits for the Lady Indians in the game against Mt. Vernon.
Du Quoin (2-3) will host Goreville on Tuesday before heading to West Frankfort on Wednesday.