By By Matthew Nascone
It looked like the Northview Lady Chiefs were going to snag that elusive first win of the season Friday night at home against the West Florida Tech Lady Jaguars, but a four-run, seventh inning ended NHS's hopes at victory, 6-3.
NHS head coach Stephanie Elowsky said she was not happy with the final inning of the game and said her players are better than that.
The Lady Jaguar seventh inning saw eight batters come to the plate, but no hits in the inning. Three errors and two walks are what did NHS in.
The Lady Chiefs (0-3) grabbed their first lead of the season in the game, however. After West Florida opened the game with one run scored in the top of the inning, NHS took the lead on four hits in the inning.
NHS junior outfielder Briana Halteman opened the inning with a hit. Freshman catcher Emily Vickrey continued the inning with a single and freshman pitcher Miranda Burkett drove in Halteman and Vickrey with a single to left field.
Burkett (0-3) finished the night 2-for-4 at the plate with two RBI. She also picked up the loss on the mound, allowing six runs, two earned in seven innings. She struck out five batters, walked nine and allowed three hits.
Sophomore third baseman Candice Greenwell also had a double in the first inning, but was left on base. She was 1-for-3 at the plate with one double. Vickrey was 3-for-4 on the evening with two runs scored.
The Lady Chiefs added to their 2-1 lead in the fifth inning when Vickrey scored her second run of the game. West Florida tacked on one in the sixth inning and four in the seventh for the 6-3 victory.
The Lady Chiefs hosted the Escambia County Lady Blue Devils Tuesday and the results will be in Sunday's Advance. Up next for the squad is the Dothan Tournament Feb. 22-23.