Lady Bears beat Narrows but lose player

BEARS WIN COMES WITH A COST
By JERRY SCOTT/Staff

Bland County’s eighth softball win of the season came with a cost. The Bears scored a 4-1 win over Narrows on April 24 but lost pitcher/third baseman Morgan Brizendine in the process. The Rocky Gap HS junior suffered a broken right ankle as she slid into third base in the fifth inning and is lost for the season.
Despite trailing 1-0, Brizendine and the Bears were working on two-hitter through four innings when the Bears came to bat in the top of the fifth frame. That’s when the Bears put together a two-run rally to take the lead for good en route to improving to 9-3 for the season.
Narrows’ Brittany Kast handcuffed the Bears through the first four innings, limiting Rich Hankins’ club to just one hit and just five overall baserunners. Up until the breakthrough fifth, a single by Laurel Hankins had been the lone Bland County hit.
Then with two outs in the top of the fifth, Danielle May walked and Hankins tripled to tie the game 1-1. Brizendine doubled for a 2-1 Bland County lead and suffered her ill-fated injury moments later as she swiped third. With pinch runner Megan Atwell on third, Adrianna Hutchens popped out to end the threat.
The Bears added two runs in the sixth as Jessica Coburn walked and after stealing second, scored when Kaitlin Kinser reached on an infield error. Kinser later scored on Cari Neal’s two-out single before Kast whiffed May to end the inning.
Narrows had taken a 1-0 lead in the first as Brizendine hit a batter leading off the game and two stolen bases and a Kast groundout scored the run. The lead stood until Bland County got it going in the top of the fifth.
After the first inning, the pitching duo of Brizendine and May, who came on after Brizendine’s injury, allowed Narrows just eight baserunners and three of those came in the seventh when May struck out Brittany Ball with the bases loaded to end the game after Narrows had filled the sacks on a double and two walks. Brizendine was credited with the win, her sixth against no losses. Unfortunately, in 2008, number seven will not come.
The winners had only four hits, including two by Hankins. Brizendine and May combined to strike out five Narrows batters while walking four and hitting one. Narrows finished with two hits, a single and double by Kellie Davis.

Bland County 000 022 0—4 4 2
Narrows 100 000 0—1 2 3
Brizendine, D. May (5) and Hankins. Kast and A. Davis. WP—Brizendine (6-0). LP—Kast. Sv—D. May. HR—none.