Lady Indians snap three-game skid, top Sparta 10-0

&#160;The Lady Indians came into Thursday's conference showdown with the Sparta Lady Cardinals fresh off back-to-back one-run losses looking to turn things around. <br />And they did just that, as Jackson worked six scoreless innings while the offense did more than enough as Chloe Hill knocked in the final run of the game on a single right, sealing the 10-0 slaughter-rule win. <br />"To get off a three-game losing streak and get back in the win column a little bit (was good to see)," Du Quoin head coach Jason James said. "With the win blowing in as it is, we hit the ball fairly decent so maybe that's a sign of good things to come and hopefully we can keep that going." <br />Jackson surrendered just three hits over six innings while walking two batters and striking out six as Sparta was unable to get a runner to third base the entire contest.<br />"Yea (it was a typical performance form Jackson)," James said. "She was hitting spots and I think she has done a lot better job the last two weeks of focusing in, hitting spots and being comfortable with what she's throwing. <br />"And when the defense plays behind her and gets some key outs there it helps our confidence and gets us going." <br />Offensively, the Lady Indians got things going from the start. Chloe Hill led off the game with a single and Katie Smith reached on a HBP on the next at bat. <br />Jackson capitalized with a double to score both runners and give her team the early 2-0 lead. <br />Smith scored again in the third inning as she led the inning off with a single and came around to score on a Sparta error. <br />Already ahead 3-0, Du Quoin erupted in the fourth inning as they brought 11 batters to the plate. <br />It was the seven, eight and nine hitters who got things going as Meryn Gross led the inning off with single and Olivia Whitely reached the following at-bat on a fielders choice which Sparta mishandled. <br />Mayci McKinnies capitalized as she drilled a two RBI single up the middle extending the lead to 5-0.<br />Morgan Bullar continued the momentum with a pair of RBI's herself a few batters later with a double to score Hill and Smith. <br />Gross who got things started in the fourth capped off the six-run fourth with another single to knock home Bullar.<br />"All year I thought our seven, eight and nine (hitters) have come up and put the ball in play and made some things happen," James said. "And they did that today and helped spark us a little bit in that (fourth) inning to get something going and we capitalized on it and we hopefully we can keep on rolling." <br />The Lady Indians loaded the bases in the fifth but were unable to deliver the game-ending tenth run. Nonetheless, the Lady Indians made up for it in the bottom of the sixth as Hill knocked in Gross, who led off the inning with her third single of the game, to end the contest via slaughter-rule 10-0.<br />The Lady Indians will look to ride the momentum into Monday's home conference matchup with Anna-Jonesboro with the game scheduled to start at 4:30 p.m.