Jasper drops opener 16-1
By GEORGIA PURDY Newsboy Correspondent

The Jasper Lady Bulldog softball team lost their district opener 16-1 against Kirbyville last week.

"Kirbyville hit much better than we did," Coach Nancy Walker said. "They had 15 hits and we had none. They had eight K's and we had zero. We also had one error.

Jesse Cordova was the losing pitcher.

At the Center tournament, Jasper won the first pool game 7-3 over Shelbyville.

"We hit well in this game," Walker said. "We had four hits. It was a 55 minute pool game so we had only three and a half innings. Murissa Mays and Jocelyn Land did well getting on base with the left side slap. Andrea Castle got a nice single and Reba Dougharty got on with a single and scored. Keyna Mason had an RBI to score Chanel Lewis. Mason also got a single."

In game two, they lost 2- 0 to Nacogdoches.

"We played well but we left four on base that should have scored," Walker said. "Mays and Mason had singles. When we needed the big hits, we didn't come through though."

Next came Center, a 3-0 loss .

"Center hit the ball well against us and we didn't hit well," she said. "We had six strike outs against us. Jesse Cordova pitched a good game. We just didn't come back and hit."

Jasper picked up their second tournament win, 10-3 over Trinity.

"We had some nice hits in this game," Coach Walker said. "Land, Mays and Mason all had singles and scored. Castle had a triple and made some very good plays in the outfield."

In the last game, Jasper lost 8-1 to Joaquin.

Joaquin had 10 hits to Jasper's two. Those were singles by Lewis and Land. Land also scored on a pass ball in the first inning.

"We played hard but didn't hit well enough to win," Walker said. "Overall, the girls got in some good playing time over the weekend and learned a lot, which is what this young team needs. The more we play, the better we will get. They are just so inexperienced and this helps us gain more confidence and improve.

I would like to see our pitching improve so that we can are not getting tired early in the game and we are not walking so many batters. Offensively, we need to hit the ball more and put it into play. If we can improve on these two areas, we will win more games."

Jasper played Orangefield Monday night and will meet Bridge City Friday night on the road. The next two home games are March 14 and 17, against Hamshire-Fannett and Hardin-Jefferson, respectively.