Newport- A strong all-around performance from Newport softball’s Lacey McNeel led the Tigers past the visiting Monadnock Huskies on Wednesday night, 5-0.
After a lengthy delay that saw the game’s start time pushed back to five o’clock due to a lack of umpires, the Tigers took the field and made quick work of the Huskies in the top-half of the first. McNeel fell behind 3-0 to the first batter, but proceeded to strike out the side.
The bottom of the first saw McNeel get on-base with a leadoff double. Two batters later, a sacrifice fly from Stacia Dame would drive her in, putting Newport on top 1-0.
Another 1-2-3 top half led to the bottom half of the second, where Megan Howard hit a two out single, and was then driven in by Shelby Adams to make the score 2-0.
McNeel continued to roll on the mound in the top half of the third. She would finish the game having only allowed two hits, four walks, while striking out 13 Huskies.
Lacey McNeel struck again in the bottom of the third, by cranking a homerun deep over the centerfield fence. The top of the fourth saw McNeel allow her first base runner on a walk, losing her attempt at a perfect game. But yet again, Monadnock would be held scoreless.
The Tigers would tack on two more runs off an error and a base hit from Hailey Perry, to bring the score to 5-0. Then, in the top of the sixth, the Huskies got their first two hits of the contest, and would load up the bases with only one out. McNeel would strike out the next two batters, however, stalling the Monadnock-momentum.
“Her drop-ball and rise-ball were working,” said Newport Head Coach Sam McNeel. “Those two big strikeouts with the bases loaded were huge… showed a lot of mental composure,” he said when asked what impressed him most about her pitching performance.
Surprisingly, Lacey McNeel would come back out to pitch for the seventh. Having already thrown 89 pitches, it was an interesting move. “She throws about a 150-200 pitches every practice, so that is normal,” said Coach McNeel. She would finish with 107.
Despite getting the win, Newport’s coach still saw areas in need of improvement. “I think we took too many strikes,” McNeel said. “We have three hour practices, and two of that is hitting. They think too much when we get in the game.”
The loss drops Monadnock to 1-5 on the season going into their game Friday against Kearsarge. Newport is now 2-0 following the win and go up against Sunapee on Thursday.
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