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Lellock Ks 15; Barenchik, Crago power Punxsy to win |
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Written by Dan Walk
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Thursday, 15 April 2010 |
Punxsy starting pitcher Amber Lellock recorded 10 strikeouts during the first three innings of the team's 9-2 win over Clearfield Wednesday. (Right photo) The Lady Chucks mob Shawnna Crago (top, left) after she rocketed a solo home run to center field during the sixth inning. (Photo by Dan Walk/The Punxsutawney Spirit)
PUNXSUTAWNEY — Ten of senior Amber Lellock's 15 strikeouts came during the first three innings, and juniors Ashley Barenchik and Shawnna Crago bashed three hits apiece during the Punxsy softball team's 9-2 victory over Clearfield Wednesday afternoon.
Lellock pulled off the rare 10-K, three-inning feat due to a wild pitch during the first inning that allowed Clearfield's B.J. Bowman to advance to first base after she swung and missed for strike three. Strikeouts aside, it was Lellock's veteran play on the mound that led to the Lady Bisons (1-5) scoring two unearned runs on just two hits, as Punxsy cruised to its third-straight victory.
The Lady Chucks (3-0) scored twice in the first inning — they've scored during the first in every game this season — but didn't crack the scoreboard again until the fourth. Clearfield was able to trim the deficit to 2-1 through 3 1/2-innings, but it was Lellock who kept Punxsy in the game until its bats heated up.
"We kept letting them hang around during the early innings, which had me concerned, but she was making her pitches," Punxsy manager Alan Pifer said. "She pitched a very nice game for us. She had command of most of her pitches and definitely had some pop on her fastball and was spotting it well."
Pifer was surprised that Lellock was so sharp, considering it was her first time on the mound during the regular season. She also hadn't pitched more than three innings during a scrimmage or intra-squad scrimmage before Wednesday's complete game.
"It makes that all the more impressive," he said.
Punxsy expanded its lead during the fourth inning by tallying four runs, with three being unearned. As the Lady Chucks entered the bottom of the sixth inning up 6-2, they managed three more unearned runs, with Crago's line-drive solo home run serving as the team's final score of the game.
Crago hit a sharp line-drive that was caught by State College's center fielder during Punxsy's win Monday, and Pifer knew it was only a matter of time before she would get some air under another hard-hit ball.
"You can see that coming because the game before, she just absolutely smoked the ball to center, but she flew out," Pifer said. "That ball was absolutely torched (Wednesday). She has tremendous power, and she's going to hit some home runs this year."
Crago's blast helped her register a 3-for-4 game that included two RBIs and two runs scored. Her power bat was joined by Barenchik's, who went 3-for-3 Wendesday with an opposite-field triple during the first inning, two RBIs and two runs scored.
Both Jenna Reitz and Hannah Neal collected two hits, as Punxsy managed 12 total base-knocks against Clearfield freshman pitcher Heather Picard, who threw a complete game, but suffered the loss.
Punxsy hasn't allowed an earned run since the fifth inning of its first game of the season, a span of 16 innings. But at the same time, the Lady Chucks have surrendered three unearned runs, an occurrence that Pifer hopes doesn't become a trend.
While Lellock's 15 strikeouts and Punxsy's 12 hits were the positives, the Lady Chucks' four errors stood out.
Clearfield had a runner on third base during both the second and third innings due to a pair of Punxsy errors, but Lellock struck out the side during both frames.
An error on Suzie Colesar's grounder led to her scoring later in the fourth, and Bowman singled before advancing to third on an error and later scoring on a Colesar groundout in the sixth.
"Defense was a little shaky early on. We have to tighten that up. It's a little bit of a concern," Pifer said. "I don't know what happened today. Hopefully, it's just a quirk, and we don't see it again."
Crago's RBI single scored Barenchik after she tripled in the first inning. Reitz then doubled home Crago to make it 2-0 in favor of Punxsy.
Neal's RBI single brought home Reitz in the fourth inning, but Neal should have been forced out at second base to end the inning on a Megan Kauffman ground ball that turned into a Clearfield error. Angela Laska then hit an RBI single, and Barenchik bashed a two-run single.
Laska reached on an error in the sixth, and Barenchik was walked before Taylor Powell's RBI groundout. After Barenchik came home on a wild pitch, Crago hit her solo home run to center field.
After recording five-straight outs without a K during the fifth and sixth innings, Lellock struck out the side in the seventh to end the game.
Punxsy's busy week continues at 4:30 p.m. today in Altoona. The Lady Chucks will then visit Williamsport at noon Saturday.
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Last Updated ( Friday, 16 April 2010 )
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