By Andrew Cato, ShowMe Times Sports Editor

SENATH - The Lady 'Cats cruised to a 9-0 victory against Senath-Hornersville on Thursday afternoon thanks to a dominant pitching performance from starter Becky Anderson and a solid defensive performance by the entire team.

The senior right-hander hurled a complete game, three-hit shutout including six strikeouts. Anderson also had a solid day at the plate, going 3-3 with two RBI's, one run scored, and was a home run shy of hitting for the cycle.

Ashley Brown plated Dexter's first run on an error in the top of the first inning. The Lady Lions stranded a baserunner on second in the bottom of the inning.

Tiffany Watson led off with a walk in the second inning, but was caught trying to steal second base. Taylor Owens reached base on an error and was brought home by triple from Anderson. The third inning saw the 'Cats with the bases loaded, but unable to score.

Brown's sac fly to center in the fourth brought Anderson home to increase the lead to 3-0. The Lions had runners in scoring position with one out in the bottom of the fourth, but line-outs to third base and the pitcher allowed the 'Cats to keep the shutout alive.

The Lady 'Cats put together a two-out rally in the fifth, with Owens and Anderson collecting RBI's. The Bearcats struck for three runs in the top of the sixth inning, thanks to a triple from Emily Triplett; in the seventh, Triplett came through with an RBI single to plate the ninth and final run of the game.

"Senath is a good, young team. They put the ball in play and forced us to play solid defense," head coach Leonard Morse said after the win. "Our girls rose to the challenge and played incredible defense behind Becky. Every player was involved, with our infield turning a double play."

The 'Cats collectively hit .267 in the contest, but Morse attributed outstanding pitching by the Lions for the relatively slow day at the plate. "Our offense was kept off balance by Senath's freshman pitcher who continuously threw the high strike. We popped up too many times for comfort," he said. "Our girls continued to plug away and steadily increased their lead. They really came together as a team and continued to play well in support of each other."

"I am very proud of them and how much they have improved throughout the season. We have two games left next week with Advance and Twin Rivers, both of whom are very good teams with good pitching," Morse added. "Those games look to be an exciting way to finish a great season."

The Lady 'Cats increase their record to 12-6 with the win; they will take the field again on Monday (April 30) when they host the Advance Lady Hornets, who defeated the 'Cats 15-1 in last week's SCAA Championship game.