For the first four innings of Tuesday’s District 5A-3 contest against Claremore, the Grove Lady Red appeared to be on the verge of putting it all together.
A three-run first inning fueled by four infield singles and highlighted by Libby Morris’s RBI double had given Grove a 3-0 lead, and even after the Lady Zebras had tied things up with three runs of their own in the top of the third, the game was still tied heading into the top of the fifth.
But that’s when sixth-ranked Claremore showed why they’re one of the favorites for the district title and a state tournament berth, reeling off five straight hits at one point during a seven run fifth inning that led to a 15-6 win.
“They’re a very good team,” Grove head coach Jeremy Collins said afterward. “I think we gave ourselves a chance and shot ourselves a chance and shot ourselves in the foot defensively. We’ve got to correct some of those things.”
Grove added fuel to the fire with two errors during the fifth inning. The Lady Zebras didn’t need much help as they pounded out 12 hits and 12 runs over the final three innings.
The Lady Red (0-4) countered with their best offensive game of the season. Paige Miller and Taylor Rupe started things off with infield singles. Miller would later score on a wild pitch before Morris drove in the game’s second run with a looping double down the right field line.
Megan Porter and Ciera Christy would later reach on base hits, the second one scoring Morris for a 3-0 Grove lead.
Claremore would bounce back with some small ball of their own, using a walk and two bunt singles to load the bases. A walk, a groundout and a double would lead to three runs and a tied game before the Lady Zebras broke things open in the fifth.
“Today we had some runners in scoring position and came up with some timely hits,” Collins said. “The fourth, fifth inning, that’s kind of when we give up our big innings and have some lapses defensively. We’ve got to find a way to put a stop to that. You’ve got to have something happen defensively and make some plays.”
Grove would get to within four with three runs in the bottom of the fifth. Morris singled and Porter followed with a double off the left field wall. Morris would later score on a passed ball and two runs came in on Christy’s single to make it 10-6 before Claremore added two in the sixth and three in the seventh to finish off the game.
Tuesday’s game was the second of five the Lady Red will play this week. Grove will travel to Coweta on Thursday for another district contest before playing in the Hall of Fame Festival in Shawnee on Friday and Saturday.
“It’s going to be a long week of games,” Collins said. “Our games are our practices right now. We’ve got to learn on the field as we go along.”
