No. 1 Lady Cougars clip Carthage
By Staff
OUTn Newton County's Krissi Harris is forced out at second by Carthage's Brandi Wilbanks. Photo by Paula Merritt/The Meridian Star
By Marty Stamper/The Meridian Star
Sept. 7, 2001
DECATUR – Newton County's top-ranked Lady Cougars upped their record to 10-0 with a 6-0 shutout of Carthage Thursday night.
The Lady Cougars rode the pitching arm of Suzanne Chaney and the swift legs of Kristin Chaney and Shelly Ferguson to take the Region 5-3A win.
Newton County is 2-0 in the region. Carthage fell to 4-6 overall and 1-1 in 5-3A.
Suzanne Chaney (10-0) followed Tuesday's one-hitter at Choctaw Central with a two-hitter against Carthage. From the second through the seventh innings, she retired 16 batters in a row.
The Lady Cougars got on the scoreboard early. Kristin Chaney led off the bottom of the first with a double and scored on a single by Betsy Clark, who entered the game with a sizzling .655 batting average.
The Lady Cougars picked up two runs in the bottom of the third. Jennifer Smith led off the frame with a single. Courtesy runner Lindsey Little scored on a triple by Kristin Chaney. Chaney also scored on the play on a throwing error by Carthage second baseman Brandi Wilbanks.
Newton County padded the 3-0 lead with three runs in the fifth. Smith drew a leadoff walk and Kristin Chaney followed with a single. Ferguson ripped a line drive to right center that went for a triple, driving in Little and Chaney. Ferguson then scored when Clark's ground ball was booted by third baseman Amber Kelly.
The Lady Cougars finished with 13 hits with Kristin Chaney going 3-for-3 and Dominique Mapp and Joy Cavenaugh both going 2-for-3.
Jodie Rawson and Krystal Ellington both had a single for Carthage's two hits. The Lady Tigers only committed two errors.
Newton County returns to action Saturday in the Clinton Invitational Tournament. The Lady Cougars will play Northwest Rankin at 9:40 a.m., Forest Hill at 1:10 p.m., and Madison Central at 4:40 p.m. Semifinals in the 16-team tournament are slated for 5:50 with the championship scheduled for 7 p.m. at Traceway Park.
Marty Stamper is a sports writer for The Meridian Star. E-mail him at mstamper@themeridianstar.com or call him at 693-1551 ext. 3234.