B
S PORTS
Section B
Wednesday, APRIL 26, 2017
South Lane County Sports and Recreation
Contact Sports, 942-3325 or e-mail sports@cgsentinel.com
Bulldogs steal bases, game from Lions
Despite a rally, the Lady Lions could not come back against Sutherlin
The Sutherlin Bulldogs beat the Lions to the bag, stole bases and found holes in the in-fi eld to bring home the 11-1 victory. Lion's Coach Cheryl Frieze said the team made better contact with the ball and continues to grow and develop
their game. Above, the throw just beats the Lion runner for an out.
Cottage Grove High School
Softball
Coach Cheryl Frieze hates
cmay@cgsentinel.com
to lose. Unfortunately, that's just
what the Lady Lions did on Fri-
day's doubleheader against Sutherlin's Bulldogs. The Lions lost the
fi rst game 6-22 and fell to the Bulldogs again 1-11.
"We made good contact," Frieze said. "We made good contact
with the ball but we just weren't hitting the gap. But it's a good
sign that our hitting is improving and we'll continue to build and
improve."
While Frieze has high hopes for continued growth through the
remainder of the season, Friday's showing had the Lions failing to
make plays at fi rst and third and hitting out of the infi eld. When they
did manage a fl y to outfi eld, the Bulldogs made quick work of it.
Frieze's high hopes did not come without reason during the sec-
ond game when pitcher Chloe Malmstedt managed to get Suther-
lin's lead-off hitter to foul out. Malmstedt ran the pitch count to
three and two for the second batter who eventually made it home on
singles from number three in the line-up. Malmstedt got the Lion's
out of trouble by striking out the next batter and aiding the infi eld
by getting them a line drive to catch for the third out.
The Bulldogs' bats swing hard by the second inning, hitting the
holes in the infi eld and hitting for length in the outfi eld. Despite the
Bulldogs' constant tendency to foul off Malmstedt's pitches, they
managed to get on the board quick and capitalize when they had
runners in scoring position. Their constant cries of "B-A-T-T-L-E
battle for me baby," didn't seem to shake the Lion's but calls from
the crowd prompted the infi eld to back up their pitcher who got in a
By Caitlyn May
fair number of strikes in the defeat.
But the Bulldogs did not need to hit to advance. Once on base, the
team managed to steal four bases, including home, from the Lions
who couldn't get the ball to the bag fast enough. They added four
runs in one inning off slow throws to the bag and a failure to turn
the play. They fi gured the Lion's out and kept swinging, adding to
their lead.
Cottage Grove did not go down without a fi ght, however. Kate
Johns launched balls to the outfi eld but couldn't seem to fi nd the
Bulldog's weak spot in coverage. Jayla Leach also tried to add to
the team's one run but the Bulldogs' quick release of the ball and
plays at fi rst wouldn't allow her to advance the bases. Malmstedt
wasn't just impressive on the mound. In the box she managed to hit
one through the hole in the infi eld and get on board fi rst before ad-
vancing to second on a hit through the same hole by Taylor McVey.
Despite being able to get multiple players on base, the inning ended
without bringing someone across home plate.
Overall, a miscommunication in base running and fi elding robbed
the Lions of the chance to add to their run total and squeak by with a
win over the Bulldogs. Frieze was heard on the sidelines calling for
players to run and watch for the opportunity to advance the bases.
The Lion's managed to get runners in scoring position sporadi-
cally, including in the last moments of the game. A walk for Lexie
Flaherty who managed to steal second base and score had the crowd
hopeful the Lion's would rally. But two quick outs brought the Li-
on's season to 0-15.
The team will play Junction City in a double header on Friday
before coming home to face Sisters on May 2.
Athlete of the Week
Lion's Pride raises $16,000
The Lion's Pride Pageant totaled their fundraising efforts on Saturday, April 22 during the Zany dance where contestants learned the group had raised
$16,000 for the Children's Miracle Network. Zane Levings took home the overall win as well as the congeniality award.
Lion's pitcher Chloe Malmstedt, #24, earned athlete of the week after
pitching around a struggling defense and stalled offense against Sutherlin
on April 21. Chloe kept her head in the game, fi red off strikes and backed
up the infi eld on defense. Congratulations, Chloe!
Grad Night at the races!!
April 29th
FREE general admission to all high school seniors!!
Event Classes: Todd’s Auto Body Sprints,
Mohawk Metal IMCA Modiieds, IMCA Sportmods,
Street Stocks, and Quality RV Hornets