Lady Titans blank Erwin

Credit: Bonnie Byrd/bbevent.photoreflect.com

The McDowell Lady Titans' Kaylie Long takes a swing at this pitch during McDowell's 8-0 shutout of Erwin.

By: Dan Crawley | mcdowell_youth@yahoo.com
Published: April 29, 2010

The McDowell Lady Titans' Courtney Buchanan has put together some impressive outings on the mound in her short time as a varsity softball player, but Wednesday's three-hit shutout in an 8-0 win against Erwin may have been the freshman's best performance to date.
Buchanan dominated for McDowell (9-10 overall, 6-3 Mountain Athletic 4A/3A Conference) as she went the distance, allowing only three hits while striking out six batters. Two of those hits came from Erwin's Jordan West, who, in a previous game back on March 26, hit a game-winning grand slam off Buchanan.
The big difference between this go-around and the 8-7 loss at Erwin was that West was never in a position to directly affect the outcome of the game.
Even through West reached third on both occasions, it was Buchanan's pinpoint accuracy around the plate that kept West and the rest of the Lady Warriors from scoring.
"Courtney was spectacular out there," said McDowell head coach Bill Taylor. "She did a great job keeping the ball down in the zone and forcing Erwin to pound the ball into the ground. There were only two balls to reach the outfield all night and the third hit was a bunt single. She was very dominant."
Aiding in Buchanan's cause was a balanced offensive attack.
The Lady Titans scored a run in the second inning on a single by Brandi Davis (1-for-3, RBI), who drove in Kerri McKinney (2-for-3, 2RBIs).
Then, in the third, McDowell broke the game open by scoring six times. The Lady Titans strung six consecutive hits together during the frame.
McDowell added another run in the fifth on a Jordan Johnson RBI single that drove in Kaylie Long. Johnson was 3-for-3 in the contest with two runs driven in.
"I was happy with the overall effort given tonight," said Taylor. "It was another situation where we had to take care of business early and not let them (Erwin) stay close as the game wore on. Erwin is a good enough team to beat most everyone if you let their confidence build. We did a good job in taking quick command."
Taylor Proctor (1-for-3, RBI, BB), Jessie Norman (1-for-4), Holly Coker (1-for-4, RBI) and Taylor Settlemyre (1-for-3, RBI, BB) got one hit apiece for McDowell in the contest.
The Lady Titans will conclude their home schedule today against Asheville (6 p.m. start-varsity). McDowell still holds a one-game lead over A.C. Reynolds for third place in the Mountain Athletic Conference standings and second place among the 4A schools.
The McDowell jayvees improved to 12-1 on the season as they blanked Erwin 15-0 in three innings. Cassidy Hensley picked up the win on the mound.

Lady Titans blank Erwin

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