Monday's Prep Softball: Lady Tribe suffers disappointing road setback

</element><element id="paragraph-1" type="body"><![CDATA[Committing eight errors and allowing four unearned runs, Du Quoin High School's girls softball team dropped a disappointing 6-5 eight-inning affair to Benton Monday afternoon.

The Lady Indians (6-2) saw their five-game winning streak evaporate and board the bus for the long ride to Goreville Tuesday.

First pitch time is set for 4:30.

Benton's record improved to 5-1.

"First of all I want to apologize for the way we played today," Lady Indians coach Jason James said. "I take full responsibility for not having them focused and ready to play. We just came out and seemed disinterested from the time we got off the bus."

Du Quoin started the game with a flurry, scoring three times in the opening frame. Kelsey Toler hit the second pitch for a long solo home run to leftfield. Singles from Jessica Hirsch, Ashley Hess and Cassidy Rice produced the second run with Hess scoring after an error for a 3-0 lead.

Benton went ahead for the first time at 4-3 in the fourth before Du Quoin again tied things.

Megi Jones started the fifth with a basehit and eventually scored on Heather Cavins' sacrifice fly.

In the sixth, the Lady Tribe went ahead for the last time when Rice singled, moved up on perfect sacrifice bunts from Chelsea Hill and Magen Edwards. She then scored when Kelsey Robinson smacked an RBI single.

Benton forced overtime with an unearned run in the seventh and then won the game after another Du Quoin miscue an inning later.

"We have lost two games and both have been in extra innings," James said. "We just given then away. We committed eight errors, struck out 11 times, missed four routine fly balls and went to the plate trying to pull everything."

Hirsch had two hits for Du Quoin. Toler's home run was her first of the season and 19th by seven different Lady Tribe batters this season.

Hill (4-1) scattered seven hits and struck out four.

"We are justi going to have to regroup and see what happens at Goreville," said James.

He'll send Rice (2-1) to the pitchers circle against the Lady Blackcats.