East Hamilton eighth-grader Syerra Rogers fired a four-hit shutout against Soddy-Daisy on Thursday. Rogers' teammate, Miracle Gorman doubled in the first inning and later scored the game's only run on an infield groundout. Soddy-Daisy pitcher Stephanie Blevins also pitched a four-hitter.
photo by M.A. Locke
Prior to Thursday’s softball game East Hamilton coach Norma Nelson was bemoaning the fact her Lady Hurricanes were struggling, having won just once in seven games.
On the drive to East Hamilton, Soddy-Daisy coach Travis Hale was on the phone with his pal Greg Rosser, an assistant coach at Arts & Sciences. Hale was fretting over his Lady Trojans’ lack of run production, especially with runners in scoring position.
Following Thursday’s District 5-3A game, Nelson was didn’t mention her team’s struggles.
Instead, Nelson and her jubilant players were celebrating the four-hit shutout pitching performance by eighth-grader Syerra Rogers and the Lady Hurricanes’ 1-0 upset win over Soddy-Daisy.
“I threw pretty good,” Syerra said.
“I threw a lot of screwballs and curves and felt really good.”
Nelson believes the more Rogers pitches the better she will become this season.
“Against McMinn County for the first four or five innings she was lights out,” Nelson said. “Then she got tired. Syerra was late coming out for softball because she was playing middle school volleyball. She just needs more innings to become stronger.”
Syerra, one of three Rogers sisters in the lineup, gave up a two-out triple to Breanna Britton in the second inning; Alexis Trimiar stroked a leadoff single to center in the fourth; Haley Harvey singled in the fifth inning when the Lady Trojans wasted a bases-loaded opportunity and Courtney Daughtrey singled to right with two out in the sixth.
Facing the talented Lady Trojans (8-4, 3-1) in the seventh, Rogers didn’t wilt. Rather, she retired Soddy-Daisy in order, just like she did in the second inning.
“(Rogers) did really good,” said Soddy-Daisy’s Stephanie Blevins, a sophomore who matched Rogers’ four-hit effort.
In Hale’s opinion, Rogers’ success came from superb command of her pitches – she walked only two batters, Britton getting free passes in the first and fifth.
“They had our number at the plate,” said Hale, who is in his first season as the Soddy-Daisy coach. “I was on the phone with my buddy Greg Rosser on the way over here and was talking about us leaving so many runners on base. I told him it was going to bite us.
“On Tuesday, we left nine runners on base, eight in scoring position. (Wednesday) we put runners on and scored some runs against Bradley and thought we were out of our pattern of wasting scoring chances. But their girl did a good job on us tonight.”
In the first inning, Britton started the game with a walk. She was wiped out by a fielder’s choice, Trimiar flied out to center and Cameren Swafford popped to second.
With two out in the third, Britton tripled into the left-field corner. She stayed right there when Rogers retired Peri Prestwood.
Trimiar singled in the fourth, stole second and moved to third on Swafford’s fly-ball out to right.
The Lady Trojans loaded the bases, thanks in part to Rogers walking Britton and hitting Prestwood. However, she induced a ground ball by Trimiar to shortstop Mircale Gorman who flipped to second for the force out to end the threat.
Daughtrey singled to right with two out in the sixth, but Rogers struck out Haley Harvey to end the inning.
Soddy-Daisy’s Hailey Woodcock popped to second to start the seventh. Blevins hit a soft liner into foul ground where third baseman Sydnie Rogers, a junior, made the easy catch. Britton bounced back to the mound to end the game.
“She was really good,” Blevins said of Rogers’ mound effort.
The Lady Hurricanes (2-6, 1-3) got the only run Rogers would need in the first inning.
Gorman ripped a leadoff double into the right-field corner and moved to third on Whitney Richards’ sacrifice bunt. Gorman scored on Syvanna Rogers’ infield groundout. Syvanna, the Lady Hurricanes’ catcher, is a freshman.
“When they got that run I was upset,” Blevins said. “But I thought we would come back and score some runs. Even after we left the bases loaded I thought we score and win the game.”
Despite the Lady Trojans’ first district loss of the season, Hale thought Blevins solidified her spot in the pitching rotation with her strong effort against the Lady ‘Canes.
“Stephanie was really on tonight,” Hale said. “We knew she would be in our rotation because she had done good in her off-season work and was ready to step up. I have all the confidence in the world in her and would put her out there against anybody knowing she would do the job.”
The Lady Hurricanes and Lady Trojans swing right back into action Friday by participating in the Jim Frost Ooltewah Invitational at The Summit in Collegedale.
Other teams in the two-day invitational, in addition to Ooltewah, of course, are Farragut, Warren County, Hazel Green (Ala.), Catholic, Buckeye, Ohio, East Ridge, Grace Christian, Whitwell, Cleveland, McMinn County, Sale Creek, Bradley Central, Columbia Academy, Meigs County, Red Bank, Central, Marion County, Sequoyah, LaVergne and Scottsboro (Ala.)
Games start at 3:30 p.m. on six fields.
BOXSCORE
Soddy-Daisy 000 000 0 – 0 4 0
East Hamilton 100 000 x – 1 4 1
Blevins and Swafford; Syerra Rogers and Syvanna Rogers.
(Contact Larry Fleming at larryfleming44@gmail.com and on Twitter @larryfleming44)