SLIDELL — Pine coach Tammy Voth repeatedly said her team needs to be more consistent, following an 11-10 loss to Salmen on the road Monday.
“One game we come in and we’re hitting it over the fence and catching everything that comes to us, and the next game, it seems like we can’t catch anything,” Voth said. “When we get consistent, it’s like I told them, we’re going to win games. We’ve got a good team. We’ve just got to be consistent. We’ve got to come out and get a good start.”
The inconsistent play came up in Monday’s game.
The Lady Raiders got off to a slow start and trailed 6-2 after three innings. Pine scored eight in a row to take a 10-6 lead through 5.5 innings, but Salmen scored five runs over the final inning-plus for the win.
The Lady Spartans took a 3-0 lead through one. Jamia Moore tripled to right centerfield to begin the bottom of the first and she scored when the next hitter, Marisa Brown, singled to center. Bethany Nicaud was hit, and Peyton Price singled down the right field line, as the ball dropped in fair to load the bases. Harleigh Pittman drew an RBI walk that plated Brown and Nicaud scored when Brianna Applegate picked up an RBI from being hit by a pitch.
Pine got on the scoreboard in the second inning. Haley Stephens began the one-out rally with a single and moved to second base on a passed ball. Morgan Grace reached on a fielding error and Stephens scored to make it a 3-1 game.
Salmen got the run right back in the bottom of the second. Moore hit an infield single to second and advanced on a wild pitch. Brown singled to right and Moore scored on an errant throw back to the infield as Salmen led 4-1 through two.
Pine got back within two in the third. With one out, Breanna Brimfield reached on a dropped pop up and later scored on a passed ball.
The runs continued to come quickly, as Salmen put up two more in its half of the third.
Cassidy Simmons dropped a single between the shortstop, left fielder and third baseman inside of the left field line. She stole second. After the first out, Charlotte Giovanni was hit. Both scored on a two-run double to the left centerfield gap by Moore, making it 6-2 after three innings.
Pine continued to chip away at the lead in the fourth. Grace singled. Cassidy Perry grounded into a fielder’s choice as Grace was forced at second. Perry later scored when Sydney Thomas reached on a fielding error and the Raiders were within three.
The big inning came in the fifth, as Pine scored five runs to go in front for the first time.
Caitlyn Polk singled to right and stole second. Erin Kennedy singled to right, but a fielding error allowed Polk to score to make it 6-4. The error allowed Polk to reach second and she went to third on a miscue by the catcher. She scored when Savannah Kennedy reached on a dropped pop up. Kennedy stole second and scored on Stephens’ single to left, tying the game at 6-6.
Stephens ended up moving to third on a throwing error back to the pitcher. With one out, Grace drove her in with a sacrifice fly and the Lady Raiders were in front, 7-6. Cassidy Perry restarted the rally with an infield single and she tallied on Thomas’ RBI double to the gap in left center. It was 8-6 after five.
Pine added two more runs in the sixth. With one out, Polk reached on an error and stole second. Erin Kennedy was hit, putting runners on the corners. The Raiders ran the first-and-third play and Polk scored on an error for a 9-6 advantage. The next hitter, Savannah Kennedy, reached on an error after a fly ball was dropped in right field. Erin Kennedy scored, but Savannah Kennedy was out at second trying to advance. It was scored as a sacrifice fly and Pine was up 10-6 after 5.5 innings.
Salmen came back with three in the sixth to pull within a run.
Price singled to left and stole second. Alexus Jones walked and Applegate reached on an error to fill the bases. Simmons reached on an error, plating Price. After the first out, Giovanni picked up an RBI when she was hit. That scored Jones and Moore hit a sacrifice fly that allowed Applegate to tally. It was 10-9 through seven innings.
In the bottom of the frame, Nicaud walked, Price reached on a throwing error and Harleigh Pittman walked to load the bases. After a strikeout, Simmons hit a liner off the third baseman’s glove, Nicaud and Price scored the tying and winning runs in the 11-10 final.
Stephens finished with three hits and two runs scored for Pine. Polk posted two hits and two runs. Grace and Thomas posted two hits each. Thomas had a double. Erin Kennedy had a hit and two runs scored. Brumfield and Savannah Kennedy had a run each. Grace, Stephens, Thomas and Savannah Kennedy all had one RBI.
For Salmen, Moore had three hits, a single, double and triple, three RBIs and two runs scored. Brown posted three hits, a run and an RBI. Nicaud scored two runs. Price tallied two hits, two runs and an RBI. Jones scored a run. Pittman had a run batted in. Applegate scored a run and a run batted in. Simmons had a hit and a run and Giovanni finished with a hit, a run and an RBI.