After a delayed start to season, Lady Dragons open with 12-2 win
The Clinton Lady Dragons played their first softball game of the season against Oak Ridge High School on March 24, winning 12-2 in a strong showing.
The head coach for the Lady Dragons, Leonard Sams, said he was happy with the way the game went.
“It went about like I thought it would,” he said. “We’ve had so many girls on COVID that we were a little rusty and out of sync when we got started.”
Still, Sams said there were strong parts of the game that he was pleased with.
“The strong suit was probably pitching,” he said. “Bree McKamey threw a one-hitter. She didn’t give them a lot of opportunity to score.
“Defensively, we didn’t really make any errors, and I thought we did fine. There’s a lot we need to work on, but I thought our catcher, Ashley Cross, had a great game. She just got back that day from having COVID. I was really concerned, because she was still fairly weak, but she did great. Emma Clevinger had a time getting us going with the triple and that ignited us offensively.”
Still, despite Clevinger’s four RBIs and Heaven Brett Kimble going three-for-three on offense, Sams said it really drove home just how young the team is.
“One of the biggest things revealed during the game, in my opinion, was the youth of this team,” he said. “We have two sophomores, but they don’t have any game experience. We basically have eight first-time players on the field, and I noticed that. They were timid on the field to start the game, and it was a little bit before they fell into line and started executing the way they’re capable of.
“Its really cool, though, because I don’t think people realize how young this team is.
“To open up with this kind of a win? That’s fantastic.”