By MATT KING/Daily Journal Sports Writer

Published: Monday, September 05, 2005
Updated: Saturday, September 3, 2005 11:21 PM CDT

DESLOGE - The Farmington softball team appeared to be certain for disappointment after committing five errors in the sixth inning during the championship game of the North County Tournament on Saturday, but the Knightettes did not give up.

Farmington trailed 7-3 entering their final inning at the plate, but somehow countered with five tallies of their own in improbable fashion to win the title with an 8-7 triumph over conference-rival Fredericktown.

Molly Currington drove in two runs with a triple to right-center field, and scored on a RBI hit by Marissa Hoehn to trim the deficit to 7-6. With runners at second and third and two outs, No. 9 batter Megan Brann lifted a fly ball to right field that was dropped, allowing both Toshia Hamlett and Erica Sherrill to score the go-ahead runs.

Natalie Sago, who pitched 17 total innings over a three-game span, retired the Lady Cats in order in the bottom of the seventh to preserve the win. Sago allowed five hits and walked none while striking out five in the complete game.

Currington was perfect 4-for-4 with three RBI in the final contest, while Hoehn and Sherrill were both 2-for-4, and Erica Fitzgerald and Kristen Hayes added one hit apiece.

Jenni Kemp went the distance and struck out six while giving up 10 hits in the loss. Kemp also singled in the game with the other Fredericktown hits belonging to Amy Hendrix, Tricia Ward, Lindsay Wagganer, and Brianna Denman.

The Knightettes finished the contest with seven miscues and the Lady Cats had five, which was a surprising occurrence between two normally solid defensive clubs.

Farmington (8-0) reached the championship game with two easy wins in pool play. The first was a 16-1 rout of Salem in five innings, followed by a 13-0 shutout over Doniphan.

Sago used her arm and her bat to lead the charge against Salem, going 4-for-5 at the plate while striking out eight batters with just two hits allowed from the circle.

Currington added a double and went 3-for-4, and Hayes was 3-for-5 from the lead-off spot. Sonya Galloway, Fitzgerald and Hoehn collected two hits each. The Knightettes broke open a 2-0 game with seven runs in the third inning.

Sago enjoyed her most dominant performance against Doniphan with a no-hitter which included seven strikeouts and no walks. Fitzgerald and Galloway each topped the hitting chart by going 3-for-3. Currington and Hayes had two hits apiece, and Hoehn and Sherrill contributed singles.

Fredericktown (4-4) rolled through its pool as well as Kemp pitched a pair of impressive shutouts. The Lady Cats defeated Steelville 5-0 before handing North County a 4-0 setback.

North County (4-3) picked up a 10-0 victory over Steelville during pool play with Katie Gibson pitching seven innings for the win.

CROSS COUNTRY

Lutheran South Invitational

ST. LOUIS - The Potosi varsity cross country squad made an impressive showing in their opening race of the season on Saturday, easily winning the Lutheran South Invitational at Jefferson Barracks Park for the fifth straight year. The junior varsity team increased its championship run to six years.

The Trojans claimed seven of the top eight finishers for a team score of 17. Josh Mathis set the pace for all others with a winning time of 16:39, crossing the line 15 seconds ahead of teammate Josh Thebeau. Ricky Armstrong was third with a mark of 17:12.

Daniel Forbes finished the run in 17:34 with John Haguewood, Nick Niggemann and Jacob Swearingen following in succession. Lutheran North posted 69 points to place second in the team standings, followed by Priory and Hancock.

Potosi freshman Megan Bourbon made quite a splash by winning the girls' race with a time of 21:09, while junior Katherine Fitzwater placed eighth.

The next competition for the Trojans will take place in Mount Vernon, Illinois next Saturday.

BASEBALL

West County Tournament

LEADWOOD - West County hosted a fall baseball tournament on Saturday, and opened it with a 7-3 triumph over Greenville. Cody Watson allowed just one earned run over five innings for the win, striking out one batter while scattering four hits.

Derick Stevens had a big offensive game for the Bulldogs, going 3-for-3 with home run, a double and two RBI. Brandon Wilhelm tripled home a run and Jake Gidden doubled in another, while Tyler Stacy and Brian Sullivan each added singles.

West County wrapped up the tournament title later in the afternoon by outscoring Woodland 9-6 on the strength of 10 timely hits. Dustin Dowd pitched two innings to earn the victory, and Sullivan helped out with two scoreless frames of relief and four strikeouts.

Jesse Dean collected four RBI in a 2-for-3 performance and Sullivan was 2-for-3 with a double, while Stevens drove in a run and had two hits. James Whitehead, Paulo Sentinel, Dowd and Watson also delivered RBI hits for the Bulldogs.

West County (4-2) will travel to Bismarck on Tuesday.

Bismarck 11, Kingston 5

BISMARCK - The Bismarck Indians broke open a tie game with four runs in the fourth inning, and remained unbeaten on the fall baseball season on Friday with an 11-5 win at home against Kingston.

Jake Zehrt and Ethan Graham were each 2-for-4 with two runs scored, and Adam Kell singled and scored three times to lead the Bismarck offense. Tim Lincoln chipped in a single and two runs scored.

Tyler Henson pitched all seven innings for the win, recording seven strikeouts while allowing six hits. Henson also singled along with Kyle Cole and Mike Franklin.

Bismarck (3-0) will host West County on Tuesday.