A workhorse in the center circle, North Adams pitcher Carlee Garrison tossed three complete games in three days and picked up three wins as the Lady Devils enjoyed a perfect week. (Photo by Tim Daulton)
North Adams takes down Ripley, Clay and Peebles
Peebles’ Abigail Smalley makes contact on one of her two hits in the Lady Indians’ 10-8 loss to North Adams on April 17. (Photo by Tim Daulton)
By Mark Carpenter
People’s Defender
Last week was an enormously productive one for Coach Paula Armstrong and her North Adams Lady Devils softball squad. The Lady Devils went 3-0 on the week, getting Southern Hills Athletic Conference wins over Ripley and Peebles and picking up a non-conference win over Portsmouth Clay.
“It was a fun week,” said Coach Armstrong. “We had an all-around great team effort last week. This team has awesome potential and when they maintain focus throughout the game they are successful. We are also a great hitting team as our top five hitters are averaging higher than our top hitter last year and we have faced some great pitching.”
On April 15, the Lady Devils hosted the Ripley Lady Jays in conference play and had little trouble, with a pair of four-run innings leading the home team to an 11-3 victory. Not only did Carlee Garrison pitch a complete game two-hitter with 12 strikeouts, she also went 2 for 3 at the plate and drove home two runs. Catcher Paige Evans continued her hot start, also going 2 for 3 and driving home two, The Lady Devils also got a two-hit effort from third baseman Marley Whalen and the entire team showed some great plate discipline, drawing 10 bases on balls off of Ripley pitching.
The next day the Lady Devils were again on their home field, hosting the Portsmouth Clay Lady Panthers in non-conference action. This game was much tighter than the previous day’s as North Adams built a 6-1 lead after three innings and then had to hang on late to pull out a 6-5 win. Garrison again got the “W” in the center circle, going the distance, allowing nine hits and striking out six. A trio of players had two-hit days, including Evans, Jerzi Tong and Riley Woods.
On April 7, the Lady Devils grabbed their third win in three days, this time on the road at county rival Peebles, the first win for North Adams over the Lady Indians in quite awhile. This contest was a slugfest with the Lady Devils coming out on top by a final score of 10-8.
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