Lady Eagles Win Four; Lose One Game To JMHS
Magnolia hurler Tori Tharp pitched her first no-hitter of the season against Wheeling Central, striking out 16, while plating the game’s only run batted in as Magnolia prevailed 4-0 April 6 at Snyder Field in New Martinsville.
“Tori just pitched so well today,” said Magnolia Head Coach Mark Batton. “She did a real good job changing pitches and did a good job keeping their hitters confused, which is not easy to do against Wheeling Central’s disciplined hitters.”
In the bottom of the first, Dallas Mullett led off with a double and moved to third on a sacrifice bunt by Alexajo Hanna. Mullet then scored on a Tharp RBI single. The Eagles added an insurance run when Abbey Horner reached on a three-base error, allowing Tharp to circle the bases.
Another pair of Maroon Knight micues helped the Blue Eagles produce runs in the fourth. Emily Blake and Andrea Lockhart each singled. Another Central error followed by a wild pitch allowed Blake to score, while Lockhart rounded the bases when the ball wasn’t cleanly handled.
“They made a couple mistakes that we were able to take advantage of,” Batton continued. “But, if you are going to beat a team like Central there are mistakes that you have to cash in.”
Central’s only run came in the fifth on a Magnolia error. Lady Knight Alexis Christakis pitched a fine game herself. She limited the Eagles to one double and six singles, while striking out nine batters to take the hard-luck loss.
Tharp got the win from the mound. She struck out 16 and didn’t walk a batter, while knocking in the only RBI with a single. Mullett doubled and singled, while Lockhart singled twice and Emily Blake and Makenzie Dawson each singled once.
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Alexajo Hanna limited the Silver Knights of Tyler Consolidated to a pair of runs on three hits, while striking out 10 batters and walking three enroute to a 3-2 victory April 5 at Kidwell.
The Eagles’ Tori Tharp came in relief of Hanna in the seventh and struck out the side to gain the save from the hill. Emily Moore started for the Lady Knights and struck out one, while issuing five passes.
Heather Suter came in relief of Moore to take the the loss. She struck out two and walked one. Suter and Moore combined on a four hitter.
Dallas Mullett doubled to lead the Blue Eagle offense. Emily Blake added a two-run double, while Abbey Horner knocked in a run on a single.
The home-standing Blue Eagle Girls’ Softball Team moved to 6-1 on the season March 30, defeating the Brooke Lady Bruins 1-0 on strong pitching and a run-scoring hit by sophomore hurler Tori Tharp.
With both Brooke and Magnolia pitchers tossing shutouts after five and a half innings, it would be Tharp that would knock in the winning run in the bottom of the sixth.
Tharp struck out 10 batters, while scattering three hits in the complete game shutout.
Andrea Lockhart pounded out three Eagle singles, while Tharp added a single, double and plated the only run of the game. Marissa Bosley added a pair of singles for the Blue and Gold and just missed a home run in the fourth frame on a ball that went barely foul.
Magnolia won two of three games in the Annual Magnolia Softball Classic. The Eagles were beaten by the eventual winner, John Marshall, in the opener 5-0. However, they came back to win 4-0 against Parkersburg and 5-1 against North Marion.
Against the Monarchs, the Lady Eagles ran up against one of the hottest – if not the hottest team – in the state. However, they won over Parkersburg behind a one-hit shutout by Tori Tharp. Tharp struck out 15 and didn’t walk a batter. She flirted with a no-hitter for six and two-thirds innings before a seeing-eye single with two outs in the seventh inning.
Dallas Mullett was the hitting star for the Eagles with a single and a pair of triples, while knocking in five runs. Andrea Lockhart added a pair of singles, while Marissa Bosley, Abbey Horner, Emily Blake and Makenzie Dawson each drilled singles.
Against North Marion, Mullet tattooed another triple – her third of the day – and knocked in two runs, while Alexajo Hanna stymied the Huskies with her arm. She struck out nine as the Eagles defeated North Marion, 5-1.
Horner and Blake each knocked in two runs, while Hanna and Jordan Babe also produced hits for Magnolia.
The Huskies got their only run of the game in the fifth on a triple and a fielder’s choice.
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In other tournament games, John Marshall defeated North Marion, 11-3; Parkersburg, 13-3; and Bellaire St. John, 6-1. St. John beat Linsly, 4-0, and Wheeling Central, 6-5.