Mexico got to all-state pitcher Jaylynn Brown early but not enough.
The Lady Bulldogs lost 8-2 to Centralia on Tuesday during their Pink Out game at Gallop Field. They struck out 12 times and …
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Mexico got to all-state pitcher Jaylynn Brown early but not enough.
The Lady Bulldogs lost 8-2 to Centralia on Tuesday during their Pink Out game at Gallop Field. They struck out 12 times and finished with three hits on a night Brown picked up her 500th career strikeout.
Head coach Hanna Jones said Mexico (7-7) responded well with a run after Centralia (9-2) already had two runs in the first inning. The Lady Panthers, who won their seventh straight game, kept adding on with three home runs.
"We did a good job of laying off of junk and we selected good pitches," Jones said. "We attacked good pitches, but we swung at a couple of pitches and left it up to the umpire a couple of times. We struggled just trying to get on and pass it on to the next girl."
In back-to-back at-bats in the first inning, Alyssa Miller doubled and Landri Teel drove her in to give Mexico early life. Brown strung together a 10-out streak not long after that.
Jones said it is easy to overthink while facing Brown. Her pitches can maneuver in ways that can confuse hitters.
"She's a got a lot of movement and a lot of speed," Jones said when asked about the most difficult thing while facing Brown. "When you're making a decision, you have a split second to decide whether or not it's a pitch you want to swing at or it's junk. Her riseball is especially really good when it comes in."
Centralia gave Brown run support early with three home runs. Her batterymate Ealynne Bostick hit a solo home run in the first inning, and Madi Johnson and Cora King each swatted a two-RBI home run in the second inning.
It was then Jones decided to replace Aleigha Henderson with Keerstan Ewing, who allowed one earned run on eight hits and two walks in 5 2/3 innings. Jones said she knew she would need both pitchers to handle Centralia's tough lineup but didn't expect making the switch after several home runs.
"To go from pitching and then switching to outfield, it's really hard to turn it off so Aleigha did a good job," Jones said. "Keerstan did a good job of throwing them off-balance. Aleigha has a little bit more speed so I'm thinking it was harder for them to adjust to the speed difference."
Mexico went into Tuesday with a four-game winning streak, including victories over district opponents Hallsville, Kirksville and Bowling Green. The Lady Bulldogs sustained their first district defeat to the district champion last yea, but Jones thought the girls stayed positive after falling behind early and learned from this game.
"We know down the road, we can take them again," Jones said. "We learned a lot from this game, and the girls still have confidence in themselves. They are still really great hitters so we are excited to face them down the road."
Mexico has a chance to face another district foe at 5 p.m. tonight at Macon (8-5).
