Clarkdale remains undefeated with 11-4 win over Quitman

By By Steve Swogetinsky / special to The Star
August 31, 2004
QUITMAN The Clarkdale High School Lady Bulldogs remained undefeated Monday with an 11-4 victory over Quitman in slow-pitch girls softball action.
Clarkdale ups its record to 10-0, while the Lady Panthers fall to 6-6.
"We don't usually play on Monday, and our bats were a little slow getting started," said Clarkdale coach Rick Roberson. "But we played solid defense the whole game. And once we started hitting the ball, we came on strong. Our lineup is capable of hitting the ball, from one-to-10."
Anna Lauren Fontenot crossed home plate in the bottom of the second to give the Lady Panthers a 1-0 lead. But Clarkdale came back in the top of the third with three runs of its own. A couple of Quitman errors and a double by Whitney Drachenberg resulted in runs scored by Lauren Robinson, Paige Sheppard and Kim Seale. The Lady Bulldogs led 3-1 at the end of their at-bat.
But Quitman wasn't throwing in the towel as the Lady Panthers scored three runs in the bottom of the third. Chelsee Culberson, Jessica Creighton and Lindsey Martin all scored for Quitman as the Lady Panthers retook the lead, 4-3. Clarkdale took control of the game in the top of the fifth. Drachenberg's double brought in Sabrina Woodall. Then Drachenberg scored on Savannah Satcher's single as Clarkdale went up 5-4.
The Lady Bulldogs added six runs in the top of the seventh to seal the victory. Clarkdale sent 10 batters to the plate during the inning, and nine connected on singles. The other batter hit into a fielder's choice. Drachenberg, Satcher, Ashley Bye, Chassidy Roberts and Sheppard all were credited with RBIs as the Lady Bulldog hitting machine pounded away.
"We had our chances," Quitman coach DAunn Odom said afterwards. "They are a great team and they put a lot of pressure on us."
Quitman will be back in action today when it visits Wayne County for a division game. Clarkdale visits Philadelphia on Thursday for a big division game.