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Softball: Canterbury 10, Admiral Farragut 0

 
Published April 11, 2015

ST. PETERSBURG — Canterbury was devoid of its power-hitting capabilities Friday.

The Crusaders had just five hits and did not produce many runs early on against Admiral Farragut pitcher Corynn Miner, a Tampa recruit who kept Canterbury's potent lineup off-balance.

Because of that, the philosophy on the bases was simple. Take whatever Miner and the Blue Jackets were willing to give. And then take some more.

Canterbury decided if it was going to go down, it would be with dirty britches.

And so the Crusaders gave it a run by showing off their skills on the basepaths in a 10-0 victory on senior night. The game was called after six innings because of the mercy rule.

"Corynn is a good pitcher," Canterbury coach Jody Moore said. "We generally get more hits. I was pretty impressed with her being able to keep us off key.

"We don't really have a plan. I usually just look at the situation. I tell the girls I don't want to develop bad habits. They were executing what we do in practice, which is: Passed ball, you go; no one is covering, you go. Make sure you lead off strong and if you see something just go. We definitely coach baserunning."

Miner, who entered with the ninth-most strikeouts in the state this season at 218, racked up another nine against the Crusaders (20-3). But she also was uncharacteristically wild with eight walks, two more than she had all season. In addition, Miner was called for a balk and hit two batters.

That left a lot of baserunners and Canterbury took advantage with 10 stolen bases and four runs scored off of passed balls.

Danielle Romanello and Taylor Bump combined for four of the team's five hits. Ahead 5-0 through four innings, the Crusaders broke the game open with four runs in the fifth and another in the sixth.

That was plenty of support for senior Hailey Hopkins, a Kent State signee who allowed three hits and had two strikeouts in five innings. Another senior, Kaeli Farnsworth, pitched a scoreless sixth. The defense also was solid with two double plays.

"The big thing we wanted in this game was for the seniors to play and of course to win," Moore said. "Mission accomplished."