NMCC softball posts 42nd straight win

NEW MADRID -- New Madrid County Central won its 42nd consecutive softball game on Friday afternoon, blanking Dexter 10--0 in five innings.

The Lady Eagles got another solid outing from senior southpaw Heather Robey, who allowed no hits, two walks and recorded 12 strikeouts.

"We don't see that kind of pitching around here," said Dexter coach Don Goodwin. "She's got a really good fastball and a heck of changeup. She can use the same motion and make you spin out of your shoes."

At the plate, NMCC was led by Autumn Walker with two hits. Other hits came from Ashley Wrather, Robey, Megan Rinehart, Heather Redd, Ashley Brittain, Laura Carter and Amelia Porter.

"This was the best day we've had by far to play this spring," said NMCC coach Steve Rogers. "It was a good day to get a game in. Dexter gave us some competition. They're relatively young too and played a good game."

NMCC scored two runs in the first inning, two in the second and one in the third. The Lady Eagles then came back with five runs in the fifth to put the mercy rule into effect.

"The score didn't really indicate the kind of game it was," Goodwin said. "We held them close until the fifth inning. It was a close game up to that point. We played more aggressive ball, our defense was a little better and our girls showed more hustle. I'm not disappointed in the way we played."

For the Lady Bearcats, McClendon was charged with the loss. Dexter (4-3) will host Puxico on Monday at 4 p.m. NMCC (6-0) will host Bernie on Monday.

"We look forward to Bernie on Monday," said Rogers. "Hopefully we can keep this thing going."

CHAFFEE -- Seven unearned runs haunted Chaffee's softball team in an 8-7 loss to Advance on Friday afternoon.

"We made all of our errors when (Advance) was on base," said Chaffee coach Debbie Lewis. "We made a lot of silly mistakes and it cost us the game."

Chaffee held a 7-6 lead after the fifth inning, only to see Advance score two in the sixth and hold on for the win. Chaffee's Shannon Hampton pitched all seven innings, allowing one earned run on five hits, five walks and had eight strikeouts.

At the plate, Mallory Kiefer was 2-for-4 and Sarah Dooley was 2-for-4 with a triple. "Both teams hit well," said Lewis. "We just made more mistakes than they did."

For Advance, Allison Broshuis got the win as the Lady Hornets improved to 6-1.

Chaffee (3-2) will be back in action April 21 at Portageville.

EAST PRAIRIE -- East Prairie's softball team dropped to 3-3 on Friday afternoon, losing to Neelyville, 3-0. The Lady Eagles' starter, Meghan Massey, went the distance, allowing five hits, no walks and had five strikeouts. Summer Holdiness paced East Prairie's offense, going 2-for-3 with a double.

Neelyville's Humphrey picked up the win. Offensively, Mathis and Conover were both 2-for-4 and Rushing was 1-for-3. Neelyville scored one run in the top of the first inning and two more in the top of the sixth.

East Prairie will be back in action on Monday, hosting Delta at 4 p.m.