Stephen F. Austin
Centenary
Ladyjacks Blank Centenary
4/8/2009 12:00:00 AM | Softball
April 8, 2009
NACOGDOCHES, Texas - Monika Covington tossed a two-hit shutout, and Stephen F. Austin blasted two home runs, as the Ladyjacks took a 6-0 win over Centenary Wednesday in a non-conference game at Hoya Field.
The win is SFA's second in three games, coming off a six-game skid, and improves the Ladyjacks' record to 20-21. Centenary, which came into the contest as the third-place team in the Summit League, falls to 24-14 on the season.
Covington got all the run support she would need in the bottom of the first. Kendal Harper led off with a double to right-center then scored on a base knock to right by Kayla Gutowski, two at-bats later. Kim Daley would follow with a single up the middle, but SFA left both runners on.
In the third inning, Daley hit her team-leading 10th home run of the year to straightaway center, bringing home Gutowski to give SFA a 3-0 lead. Gutowski had started the inning with a single to left-center. Later in the inning, Jessica Arana hit a two-out single to center, bringing home Karissa Jones from second. Jones had drawn a walk then moved to second on a ground ball by Kari Hugie.
The Ladyjacks padded their lead with another long ball in the fifth inning. Ashley Struchtemeyer connected for an opposite-field homer over the wall in right, scoring Candise Juarez. Juarez was running for Daley, who drew a walk to lead off the inning. The home run was Struchtemeyer's fifth of the season.
Covington (13-11) cruised to her fifth shutout of the season, facing just five batters over the minimum. The only batter to advance past first was Jenny Varteressian, who reached on an error to lead off the third, then moved up a station on the Ladies' first hit of the game.
Covington issued two walks with her two hits allowed and recorded 11 strikeouts, the seventh time this season she's posted double-figure punch-outs.
Daley finished 2-for-2 at the plate with a pair of RBI and a run scored. Gutowski was 2-for-3 and drove in a run. Harper, Struchtemeyer and Arana put up a hit each.
The Ladyjacks will resume Southland Conference action this weekend, when they host Central Arkansas in a three-game series. The set will open Friday with a doubleheader, scheduled to begin at 4 p.m. The Bears are currently just ahead of seventh-place SFA in the SLC standings with a 10-8 league record and a 20-20 overall record.
-- SFA --
