Lady Tigers romp over Jackson in home opener

Demopolis (10-3) scored four runs in the first inning and four in the fifth en route to a 10-3 win over Jackson Tuesday afternoon. The contest was the first home game of the season for the Lady Tigers.

“They were super excited. They’ve been let down so many times by the rain and everything else,” Demopolis coach Brittany Dunson said of her team’s eagerness at playing on its own field for the first time in 2016. That excitement showed as the Lady Tigers stepped to the plate for the first time.

Jackson scored on an error in the top of the first to take a 1-0 lead before Demopolis answered with four in the home half of the frame. Courtney Smith scored on an error before Abbey Latham stroked a double to plate Holli Gandy. After Latham scored on a passed ball, Taylor Smith scored on an Elly Brown RBI walk.

Kendall Hannah stretched the lad in the second with a solo homer to put Demopolis up 5-1. Jackson scored a run each in the third and fourth innings to narrow the gap to 5-3.

“I told them to make little adjustments. They had to come out swinging and be aggressive at the plate. You never know what the umpire is going to call, so you’ve got to make the best of everything,” Dunson said of her team’s offensive performance.

Latham then ripped a solo shot in the fourth to make it 6-3.

“I expect them to put up pretty good numbers for me. They’re doing good for the program on defense and on offense, so I’m happy with them,” Dunson said of Hannah and Latham, who have combined for eight home runs thus far this season.

Courtney Smith hit a two-out infield single in the fifth before scoring on a Gandy double. Latham then blasted a line drive over the left field fence for a two-run shot to make it 9-3. Taylor Smith stroked a run-scoring single to plate Hannah and cap the scoring at 10-3.

Natalie Tatum got the complete game win, holding Jackson to six hits over seven innings while striking out three.

Courtney Smith set the table, going 3-for-5. Gandy finished 1-for-4 with a double. Latham was 3-for-5 with a double and a pair of homers. Hannah finished 3-for-3 with a homer and a double. Taylor Smith was 3-for-5 with a stolen base. Elly Brown finished 1-for-3.

“I’m pretty happy with where we are. I’d like to have more games under our belt, but that’s something we can’t control because of the rain,” Dunson said.

Demopolis is set to play again Thursday at 5 p.m. when it hosts Hale County.