WCMS softball whips White Co.

Alyssa Millraney delivers a pitch during the first inning of Tuesday night?s WCMS softball game against White County. Millraney threw 2-1/3 no-hit innings, and the Lady Pioneers won the game 13-3.

The Lady Pioneers, who had to wait nearly an hour after the scheduled start time due to problems with the Warriorettes? bus to the game, got 2-1/3 innings of no-hit pitching from Alyssa Millraney, and helped her cause by batting around in the first inning, scoring seven runs and taking a commanding early lead.

Lauren Wilkinson, Christy Perry, Bethani McGuire and Morgan Frye started the game with four straight singles, and Bree Smith and Sarah Jacobs also added hits while Taylor Grissom, had an RBI groundout. Wilkinson grounded back to the pitcher in her second at-bat of the inning, plating another run, and Perry reached on a fielder?s choice, allowing the Lady Pioneers? seventh run to cross the plate before the third out was recorded.

McGuire singled to lead off the second, scoring on a Grissom single to center field, and Warren County led 8-0 before blowing the game open with a five-run third.

In that frame, Lindsey Rowland beat out a bunt to get things going, and went around to third on a single from Wilkinson. Perry reached on a bobbled ball by the Warriorette third baseman that scored Rowland, and McGuire plated Wilkinson with a double to left. Frye drove in Perry with a hard shot to third, and Grissom?s hit to short was booted, allowing McGuire to score. Sarah Jacobs singled up the middle, plating Frye and giving the Lady Pioneers a 13-0 lead.

Clearing their bench, Warren County surrendered three runs to the Warriorettes in the fourth, as Gabi Keith came on to pitch but was hampered by four errors in the field. She allowed just one hit in the inning, but got out of any further trouble by snatching up a grounder and retiring the Sparta cleanup hitter.

Warren County went down in order in the bottom of the fourth, but Keith and the Lady Pioneer defense ended things quickly in the fifth, allowing just one more hit before retiring the next three batters.

Millraney got the win, allowing six walks but striking out five Sparta batters. At the plate, WCMS got a 4-for-4 night from McGuire, while Jacobs, Frye and Wilkinson had two hits apiece. Every Lady Pioneer starter scored at least one run, with the exception of Grissom, who drove in two but was retired on fielder?s choices twice.

The Lady Pioneers returned to action Thursday night against Grundy County.