In a stretch of three games in four days, the Cedar Ridge softball team hasn’t shown any signs of relenting from its dominant ways.
On Friday, the Red Wolves defeated Northern Durham 5-1 to remain atop the Big 8 Conference with a 5-1 win over the Knights in Durham. Cedar Ridge, now 8-1 overall and 7-0 in the Big 8. The Red Wolves are tied with East Chapel Hill for first place with a showdown series against the Wildcats set for next week, starting Tuesday at East.
Once again, Cedar Ridge senior pitcher Rivers Andrews overwhelmed batters over the course of a sweep of Northern Durham and a victory over 15-0 Chapel Hill on Wednesday.
In Tuesday’s 11-1 win over Northern, Andrews threw her second no-hitter of the season, striking out eight. Junior shortstop Tionna Carter laced two doubles, racking up two RBIs. Sophomore Tori Dalehite, hitting leadoff, went 2-for-4 with a double and a triple. Junior Taylor Ruhl set the pace with a home run in the first inning, her first dinger of the season.
Catcher Kymberlie Thacker ripped two triples and had two RBIs.
On Wednesday against Chapel Hill, Thacker belted two home runs, each two-run blasts. Dalehite scored three times, while Ruhl added another triple in a game shortened to three innings.
Friday’s 5-1 win over Northern was the closest anyone in the Big 8 has come to beating the Red Wolves. But Andrews was the common denominator, striking out 18 and throwing a two-hitter.
In the first, Dalehite drew a leadoff walk, and circled the bases during an at-bat by Ruhl. Dalehite stole 2nd, went to third on a passed ball and scored on a passed ball.
Carter followed with a triple to center, and scored on another passed ball as Andrews was at the plate. Northern came back in the bottom of the first with a solo homer from McKenzie McCullen, the first home run Andrews has surrendered this season.
The Red Wolves scored the final five runs of the game, starting in the third inning. After Dalehite drew a leadoff walk, Carter was hit by a pitch. With Andrews hitting, Dalehite and Carter each moved up a base after a passed ball. On the next pitch, Dalehite scored off another passed ball. With two out, Thacker plated Carter with an RBI double to put Cedar Ridge ahead 4-1.
In the top of the fourth, juniors Kara Wagoner and Taylor Barnes hit consecutive singles. Wagoner came in on a wild pitch.
After McCullen’s homer, Northern only had four batters reach base in the final six innings. The Knights had just one hit the rest of the way and no one touched third base.
Cedar Ridge plays at East Chapel Hill on Tuesday, then welcomes the Wildcats to Hillsborough on Friday. In addition, Cedar Ridge will play a nonconference game at Eastern Guilford on Wednesday.