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Lady Bisons fall to State College in opener
Thursday, April 01, 2010
By Rich Murawski Assistant Sports Editor
HYDE - The State College softball team scored five runs over the last two innings to blow open a tight game and hand Clearfield a season-opening, 10-3 setback Wednesday at the Bison Sports Complex.
The Lady Lions had five of their 12 hits and drew three of their seven walks over the final two frames.
"It wasn't a bad game, but it did get out of hand there at the end," Clearfield head coach Bob Dixon said. "Up until those last couple innings, it wasn't a bad game."
State College took a 4-0 lead into the bottom of the second inning where Lady Bison cleanup hitter Suzie Colesar gave her team a lift with a line drive home run over the left field fence.
"I think that broke a lot of nerves, and we started to realize we could hit (State College pitcher Shelby Kline)," Dixon said. "Suzie has a habit of coming up on that front foot. We keep telling her to stay back and get those hips through. When she does, she'll launch it. Suzie's a big girl and she's strong and when she hits the ball, it's hit."
After Andrea Butler pitched a scoreless top of the third, the Lady Bisons struck for two more runs in the home half of the inning.
With one out, Rachel Cordon belted a double over the centerfielder's head. Butler and Janell Zalno followed with back-to-back groundballs that were misplayed by the State College infield. The two errors helped Clearfield load the bases.
B.J. Bowman walked on a full count to chase home Cordon, and Colesar plated Butler with a sacrifice fly to right field to get the Lady Bisons to within a run, 4-3.
The Lady Lions got a run back in the top of the fourth when left-handed hitter Jessi Shisler smacked an opposite-field solo home run.
Clearfield threatened again in the bottom of the fourth when Melinda Owens led off with a base hit and Cordon singled three batters later.
"Rachel Cordon hit the ball real well," Dixon said. "Colesar and Owens did, too."
But with runners on the corners and two out, Kline got Butler to ground into a fielder's choice to get out of the inning unscathed.
Both pitchers enjoyed scoreless fifth innings before Butler ran into trouble in the sixth and seventh.
She walked the first two batters of the sixth inning before getting a groundout. State College cleanup hitter Emilee Eden scored both runners with a single to center.
In the seventh, Anna Juska hit a two-run single then later stole home for the third run of the inning.
Butler gave up 12 hits and walked seven batters in seven innings of work. She also struck out four.
"She seemed to have a tough time locating pitches," Dixon said. "We were trying to work outside, but some of the time she would get the ball out over the plate. She struggled a little, but didn't do a bad job. She kept us in the game until the end. She's throwing a little harder this year, and she's worked hard all year round."
The Clearfield offense also sputtered down the stretch. It's only base runner over the final three innings was Owens, who reached first after getting hit by a Kline pitch.
Kline allowed just four hits and walked only one to notch the complete-game victory. She struck out 13 Lady Bisons.
"We stood and took a lot of strikes," Dixon said. "We tried to tell them to be aggressive.
"A lot of times we look really great at practice, but we have to take it out on the field. We take nice swings and hit the ball hard and we're aggressive in the cage or against pitchers in practice, but then we go out on the field and don't take that out there."
Dixon says that will come with experience.
"I don't feel we're a real confident bunch," he said. "But we're young. We started six sophomores and two seniors and a junior. We gotta work harder and get better. And we will."
Clearfield is back in action today at DuBois.
NOTES: Shisler batted leadoff for State College and went 3-for-3 with three runs scored and an RBI. Two of her hits were bunt singles, while the other was the home run. She also had a sacrifice bunt ... Shisler, Juska, Kristen Glantz and Eden - the first four batters in the order - were a combined 9-for-13 on the day ... Clearfield committed just one error, while the Lady Lions made two.
State College-10
Shisler cf-rf 3331, Juska 2b 3322, Glantz ss 3121, Eden 3b 4022, Brown 3b 1000, Kline p 4000, Reeder rf 4000, Hart cf 0000, Sherlock c 2010, Miller c 1000, Daye dp 2100, Graham lf 3110, Nolan lf 1110, Ross (flex) 1b 0000. Totals: 31-10-12-6.
Clearfield-3
Butler p 4100, Zalno lf 3000, Blaylock ph 1000, Bowman cf 2001, Colesar 1b 2112, Keener 3b 3000, Owens 2b 2010, Moore c 3000, Samsel rf 3000, Cordon ss 3120. Totals: 26-3-4-3.
Errors-Juska, Glantz; Cordon. LOB-State College 9, Clearfield 5. 2B-Cordon. HR-Shisler (solo, 4th); Colesar (solo, 2nd). SAC-Shisler. SF-Glantz; Colesar. SB-Sherlock, Daye, Shisler, Juska. HBP-Owens (by Kline). WP-Butler 3. PB-Moore.
Pitching
State College: Kline-7 IP, 4 H, 3 R, 1 ER, 1 BB, 13 SO.
Clearfield: Butler-7 IP, 12 H, 10 R, 8 ER, 7 BB, 4 SO.
WP-Kline. LP-Butler (0-1).
Time-2:00.
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