DANE FUELLING
WZBD.com
FLATROCK – Mallory Winner held Heritage scoreless in six of the seven innings Monday night in a crucial ACAC game and the Jay County Patriots played error-free defense to claim a 3-2 road victory.
The battle of the Patriots saw the visiting Jay County side swinging the bats well early, with Morgan Missicano and Mallory Winner barreling the ball into the outfield to open up the game. Heritage ace Danica Fuller got two strikeouts and a nice play by shortstop Libby Cain to keep JC off the scoreboard in the top of the first.
Fuller singled to lead off the bottom of the first and did what she does best, stealing bases and swiping extra bags on groundouts and flyouts, but she was stranded with two outs in the third.
Jay County seized the momentum in the second with Fuller perhaps a bit tired from her exploits on the basepaths and again led off the inning with a double and a sac fly for a 1-0 lead.
Winner settled in and set the Patriots down in order, striking out two of her eventual four K victims in the second.
The Jay County Patriots then staged the key half inning of the game and it came after Fuller recorded two quick outs. A two-out walk was followed by a single by Jaelynn Lykins and a double off the fence in right center by Jozey Shimp. That rally gave the visitors a 3-0 lead and with Winner at her best, it was all they needed.
Heritage did respond in that third inning, with Riley Davis being bunted over to second after a leadoff hit. Fuller’s second trip to the plate resulted in an RBI triple to center (see photo gallery above) and she scored on a base hit by Abriyah James, but Winner got out of a bases-loaded jam with two fly balls.
The home team got hits in subsequent innings, but each failed to find a second hit to knock them in. The Patriots ended the game with Fuller and James on the base paths and Winner fielding a ground ball cleanly for the 21st out at first base.
The win puts the Heritage record at 8-8 this season. Jay County finishes their ACAC slate at 4-2, while Heritage drops to 3-2. South Adams can clinch a conference title by beating Woodlan Tuesday night.
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