CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. — When Meghan Cunha led off the game with a double and went on to score in the first inning, it looked like the Ohio Jaguars were off and running Tuesday in the opening of the double-elimination phase of the NSA 16-and-under NSA Fastpitch World Series.
But the Jaguars couldn’t maintain the pace after that against the Tidal Waves from LaGrange, home of long-time Ohio Division II state powerhouse Keystone. The Tidal Waves built momentum with two runs in their half of the first, then really got rolling with three more runs in the fourth and four in the fifth on the way to a 9-2 victory over the Jaguars.
“Playing at 4:45 was tough,” manager Steve “Skipper” Urchek said. “We didn’t have a lot of focus. There are a lot of fun things to do here.”
That dropped the Jaguars into the tournament’s losers’ bracket for a 1 p.m. game today against an undetermined opponent. They must win that game, then win a second at 6 p.m. to stay alive in the tournament.
The Jaguars managed just four hits against the Tidal Waves. Amanda Tennant led the way with two singles, while Katie Holmes added another single to Cunha’s double.
Starting pitcher Sarah Urchek couldn’t hold back the Tidal Waves. She went the first four innings, yielding eight hits and eight earned runs while striking out two batters and walking one. Celine Pollander pitched the last three innings for the Jaguars, surrendering two hits, striking out two and walking no Tidal Waves.
Two things went wrong for the Jaguars. They struggled offensively and the Tidal Waves didn’t.
“We didn’t put many hits together,” Urchek said. “We’d seen (the Tidal Waves) at the NSA state tournament and they didn’t hit like this.”
Tuesday’s issues were addressed after the game.
“It was just a lackluster performance,” he said. “We talked about it after the game. We can play a lot better than this.”
He believes lack of focus will not be an issue today.
“We’ll play better (today),” Urchek said. “I guarantee it.”
— Karl Pearson
