Liberty pitcher stifles Amherst softball team

By Laura Clark

Published: April 16, 2008

Liberty pitcher Brooke Davis held the Lancers to three hits and one run while striking out 12 batters in a 3-1 win on April 9 at Amherst.
Davis worked seamlessly on the mound, moving the ball around the plate and visibly frustrating Lancer batters with her changeup. She said just hitting her spots wore down batters.
“I rely on my defense a lot, and they play the ball when they need to,” she said.
“She’s a great pitcher,” Lancer coach Larry Thomas said. “She kept us off balance.”
Thomas subbed in some hitters in the sixth inning as Amherst trailed by two runs. Tori Irwin got on base with a double. Back in the top of the lineup, catcher April Pugh scored Irwin with a single. Pugh was 2-for-3.
In the bottom of the seventh, Davis hit batter Bianca Gilmore and Chelsey Lacks moved her to third when she connected and Liberty picked up its only error of the game. With two players in scoring position, Davis struck out Irwin in three pitches to end the game.
“We were in the game to the final,” Thomas said. “I told them I was proud of them because they never gave up, they kept battling.”
Thomas said his team is playing catch up since they’ve had three games rained out. Liberty (8-0, 3-0) was just the third team Amherst has faced this season. The Lancers started Chelsey Lacks on the mound. She gave up six hits and two runs. Gilmore relieved Lacks in the sixth inning and gave up four hits and one run while striking out one batter. Thomas said Amherst’s third pitcher, Sydney Lewis, hasn’t gotten to start yet. The Lancer defense had one error in the seventh inning.
“The defense is our strength,” Thomas said. “(Liberty) had a lot of scoring opportunities. That’s a tough team to be playing in your third game.”
The Lancers (2-1, 1-1) host Heritage on April 16.