11 May 2014

Softball: Too little, too late


Caitie Dully drove in the Tiger run
The sun finally came out for a game day but the Tiger bats took most of it off in a 3-1 Missota Conference loss to Shakopee Saturday afternoon at Tiger Field.

Farmington (9-5) didn't get its first base hit until Amber Doyle lined a double to left-center in the fourth and didn't have more than a single base runner in an inning until the home half of the seventh when it scored its only run.

"Slow start again," Tiger coach Paul Harrington said. "We've had too many of those in games we have lost this season. We have to find a way to get something going earlier in the game.

"Their pitcher was working the outside part of the plate and we didn't adjust. We didn't drive anything today. Not very good at-bats. We hit a lot of ground balls to the second-baseman."

The Sabers put the Tigers in an early hole, using a double and single off starter Maddie Muelken to take a 1-0 lead in the first inning.

The deficit climbed to 2-0 in the fourth after another double and a two-out infield error and then in the sixth the Sabers' Megan Schmidt launched a solo homer over the leftfield fence.

The Tigers finally got to Shakopee pitcher Taylor Koenen in the bottom of the seventh when Doyle and Muelken opened the inning with singles and Emily Berdan walked to load the bases.

Caitie Dully knocked in a run with an infield out but Koenen induced Jordyn Keprios to ground to second to end the game.

The Tigers finished the afternoon with just four hits, two by Doyle and one apiece by Muelken and Carly Esselman.

Muelken absorbed the pitching loss, giving up two earned runs on six hits. She struck out two and did not issue a walk.

The Tigers spring right back into action Monday with a conference doubleheader with Chanhassen at Tiger Field.