Singletary, Leviner combine for 8 strikeouts in 3 innings
By Kevin Spradlin
PeeDeePost.com
No hand? No problem.
Rockingham Angels starting pitcher Morgan Singletary suffered a broken bone in her non-throwing hand during the district all-star tournament. That hardly mattered on Saturday against Eden in the Dixie Softball state tournament opener as Singletary and reliever Quston Leviner combined for a mercy rule-shortened perfect game.
The Angels won, 19-0, and will play at 2:30 p.m. Sunday in Eden against Montgomery County, which received a first-round bye after the original tournament bracket was busted when Garner withdrew from the competition. The Angels have now outscored their opponents 57-0 this postseason.
Singletary started and struck out five — on only 22 pitches. In the third and final inning, Quston Leviner struck out the side on only 10 pitches.
Angels assistant coach Scott Frye said the coaches had a few questions about Singletary’s ability to put on a glove on her non-throwing hand. All of those questions were answered, however.
“She was strong,” Frye said.
Pitchers are limited to 11 innings per tournament. If a pitcher throws even a single pitch in a third inning of play, that player is not eligible to pitch in the next game.
Despite the convincing victory, the later rounds of the tournament will be more difficult and Frye and head coach Keith Chappell detailed how the team can get even better.
“We drew the host team, so we didn’t know anything about them,” Frye said. “Our girls came out, they were ready to play. Our pitching, again, was outstanding. Our girls were very disciplined at the plate. When they got the opportunity to hit, they hit the ball pretty well.”
The offense was led by home runs from Allyiah Swiney and Jakerra Covington. Angels batters took full advantage of 10 walks. Covington went 3-for-3 at the plate, while Swiney, Payton Chappell and Mattie Liles each had two hits in the victory.
Both Swiney and Covington scored three times in the game, while Lyles scored twice.
Chappell said the girls showed up “with a great attitude.”
“They’re just here ready to play ball and show what they can do,” Chappell said.
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