Jones, Malvern rolls over Fountain Lake
HOT SPRINGS VILLAGE — Malvern’s Paige Jones had three hits and five RBIs to lead Malvern to an 18-1 victory over Fountain Lake Monday.
The senior catcher went 3-for-4 at the plate with one run scored and two triples for the Lady Leopards (3-8, 2-1 3A/4A-8) as they jumped to a 9-0 lead after two innings.
“Overall, I thought Paige, our catcher, had a pretty big day,” said Malvern head coach Daryl Baker. “She had two triples and a single. It was good to see some of our girls get on track because our last game we played Arkadelphia. We came from spring break and we didn’t play very well, and Arkadelphia had something to do with that, but we had a lot to do with it, too. We replaced a lot of girls from last year, and everybody is trying to get their role. Right now, we’re just trying to get ready for district tournament.”
Fountain Lake (2-4, 1-3) garnered just two hits while committing three errors in the loss.
Ball control was an issue for Fountain Lake pitcher, Hannah Vaughn. The freshman walked three of Malvern’s first four batters as the Lady Leopards cruised to a 5-0 lead after one inning, thanks in part to a two-RBI triple by Jones.
“We got on them pretty early, and I thought our pitcher came out and threw strikes,” Baker said. “She moved it around pretty good. We played solid defense. She didn’t let them hit that much, and when they did, we played good defense. We got our offense going pretty good. We did a good job taking and drawing some walks. We probably took more than I want to because we really need to uncork swinging the bat.”
Vaughn beaned a pair of batters in the top of the second inning before a pair of singles loaded the bases and sent a runner across before Jones hit her second triple of the day to clear the bases and make it 9-0.
“They hit the ball well up and down the lineup,” Davis said. “Their pitcher is solid, throwing strikes. We struggled throwing some strikes. They had some bloopers that you can’t really defend. When they hit the ball that well,
sometimes it kind of balloons on you.”
Malvern scored three more runs in the top of the third before a double and two walks loaded the bases. A double by senior Chapie Sanders sent two runs in. A hit batter followed by a fielding error by Kaitlyn Bledsoe allowed two more runs to plate in a six-run inning.
Vaughn caught the ball off the bat in her throwing arm mid-way through the inning, but she was able to finish out the game.
“That kid, I’m just so incredibly proud of Hannah Vaughn because she’s tough,” said Fountain Lake head coach Glenn Davis. “She’s resilient. She was really our number two pitcher coming into the year, and now she’s emerged as our number one. She’s done a great job. Her ceiling is pretty high. She’s played a lot of positions through the years, but she’s never been a primary pitcher. We’re really excited about her.”
With two outs in the bottom of the fourth, Jillian Norman was walked before Elizabeth Bairett hit a single that allowed Norman to reach third. Norman then scored on a passed ball for the Lady Cobras’ lone run.
“Jill was playing out of position again today,” said Davis. “She normally is our catcher, and she’s pretty sure back there. We had a third baseman out today; we had an outfielder out today, so we had move some folks around. Jill went to second and did a good job. She’s steady over there, but she’s played quite a bit. She’s a pretty steady hand, a pretty good utility player.”
The first two outs of the inning came off great fielding by shortstop Abby Leming.
“Our third baseman and our shortstop, they’re probably some of the better players in the state,” Baker said. “Sometimes, they have a hard time adjusting to the slower pitches than the faster ones.
“She (Leming) hit for us last year; she’s a returning starter. Our pitcher (Hannah Hunter) is a returning starter, and our third baseman (Kim Summerville) is a returning starter. You expect them to do well. I was real pleased. I think we’re improving, and that’s what you want this time of year.”
Vaughn picked up the loss with four full innings in the circle. She gave up 13 earned runs off 10 hits, eight walks and three hit batters while striking out three.
Hunter gave up one hit and one walk while striking out seven in her three innings to earn the win. Kealie Barber pitched the final inning for the Lady Leopards, giving up the unearned run off one hit and two walks while striking out one.
Fountain Lake will travel to Gurdon (2-9, 0-2) today, and Malvern will travel to Haskell to face Harmony Grove (10-3, 4-0) which took a 20-0 victory over the Lady Go-Devils Monday afternoon in Gurdon.