Smith, Lady Hornets shut out Sheridan
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By ROB PATRICK
BRYANT TIMES
SHERIDAN — The Bryant Lady Hornets only managed five hits against the Sheridan Lady Jackets’ hard-throwing pitcher Mary Smith, but three of them came in the fourth inning including a clutch two-out, two-run double by Andrea Hammock. And that was enough for Bryant pitcher Jennifer Smith and the Lady Hornets’ defense as they shut out Sheridan 2-0 at Oliver Williams Ballpark Monday, April 9.
It was Bryant’s fifth consecutive win. The Lady Hornets improved to 8-3 overall and 4-3 in AAAAA-South Conference play pending Tuesday’s non-league game at North Little Rock.
Mary Smith struck out 10 and walked just two. Jennifer Smith was less over-powering but even more effective. She struck out two, walked two and forced Sheridan to strand eight baserunners.
Bryant, in fact, didn’t have a hit in the first three innings while Jennifer Smith had to pitch around a one-out single in the first and a lead-off hit in the second. She pitched a 1-2-3 third.
Kelly Bennett broke through for Bryant leading off the fourth with a single to left that was misplayed by Sheridan’s Rachel Stallsworth, allowing Bennett to reach second.
But Mary Smith struck out the next two Lady Hornets. Jennifer Smith made contact, however, cuing a blooper towards first base. Sheridan’s first baseman Lindsey Mosher, with a diving attempt, tried to get to the ball in the air but came up short. The ball ricocheted off her glove and Jennifer Smith had an infield hit. She then stole second ahead of Hammock’s two-run double down the left-field line.
The rest of the way, the Lady Hornets were limited to Lindsey Sullivan’s one-out single in the fifth, Kelli Steed’s two-out base hit in the sixth, and a two-out walk to Stacy Workman in the seventh.
Sheridan managed a one-out hit by Mary Smith in the bottom of the fourth then put together its biggest threat in the fifth. With one out, Mosher looped a single to right that just evaded the glove of right-fielder Courtney Stone who made a lunging try for the ball. After a walk, a passed ball moved runners to second and third. But that’s where they stayed as Jennifer Smith struck out Courtney Hix and got Tiffany Nelson to fly out to Lindsey Stone in left.
In the sixth, Mary Smith looped a one-out single to right and, with two down, Stallsworth cracked a liner that appeared to be destined for a base hit up the middle only to have shortstop Rachel Blakley intercept it with a leaping grab to retire the side.
In the bottom of the seventh, Tiffany Armstrong drew a lead-off walk but Jennifer Smith got each of the next three batters to pop up to end the game.
