Royal Knights don't sleep on offense

Nap proves beneficial in win over Ridgewood.

By CHRIS WAGENHEIM
Published March 15, 2007

NEW PORT RICHEY - Some athletes listen to a specific song or eat a special meal to get ready for a game. But River Ridge's Shauna Ward attributed her night to something else.

"I took a nap before the game," Ward said.

The sleep proved beneficial as Ward was 3-for-4 with three doubles and four RBIs in the Royal Knights' 9-2 victory Wednesday over rival Ridgewood.

"She made a great play in the field, couple good hits, bringing in RBIs, but you know what she's been doing that for three or four years now," River Ridge coach Ernie Beck said.

The Knights (10-2) started quietly, sneaking in a quick run during the first inning before the second and third, where they couldn't get a hit.

Ward started the momentum in the fourth when she hit a line drive down leftfield, bringing in two runners. River Ridge's consistency prevailed from there. The Knights scored in the next three innings, including three runs in the fifth and two in the seventh.

"My last game was horrible so I guess I had to make up for it," Ward said.

Ridgewood coach Amber Starkey expected a strong offensive showing from River Ridge and was not all-together disappointed with her team's defensive performance.

"Our defense played well, they just hit the ball," Starkey said.

Ridgewood (4-9) had no errors in the field. River Ridge had two, allowing Ram runners to advance. Six stranded runners on nine hits throughout contributed to the Rams' loss.

"We were unable to bring the girls in," Starkey said. "We got runners on, but we fell short on moving them around and bringing them in."

River Ridge 9, Ridgewood 2

[Last modified March 14, 2007, 23:40:08]