CHESTERTON | Since breaking out of her recent slump, Chesterton's Taylor Harlow admitted to feeling more comfortable at the plate.
That was evident Friday as Harlow went 2-for-3, delivering a grand slam to left field in the third inning to help the Times No. 1 Trojans defeat Michigan City 6-2 in Duneland Athletic Conference action.
"I feel pretty confident," said Harlow, who added a single in the second inning. "I think I'm more focused and able to zone in on the ball and see it better."
Harlow was also solid on the mound for the Trojans (13-6, 8-3 DAC), throwing a complete game and giving up just one earned run.
"Taylor did a really nice job tonight," Chesterton coach LouAnn Hopson said. "I know (Michigan City) can play. (Jamieka) Collins and (Jamie) Brooks alone are a challenge."
No. 3 hitter Sydney Cooley also provided a big bat, going 2-for-3 with a two-run homer in the fifth inning for some insurance, while also scoring two runs.
Michigan City (7-6, 5-6) drew first blood in the top of the third inning when an RBI single from Collins allowed Kaitlyn Shebel to score.
The Wolves had plenty of baserunners, but simply couldn't string together enough good at-bats to bring them in. Michigan City went scoreless for three straight innings until the top of the seventh when pitcher Peyton Webb delivered an RBI single to score Teresa Saenz. However, Harlow got Collins out on a fly ball to end the threat and the game.
"I was pretty locked in, I guess you could say," Harlow said. "The defense obviously backed me up, because there were a lot of ground balls."
Other than the two powerful home runs, Webb threw a pretty solid game for the Wolves. However, Michigan City coach Candy Feare knows her team needs to change its attitude in order to turn things around as the postseason draws closer.
"We have to get angry about it and then come back next week on a mission," she said. "We've got three DAC games left, and we've got to come in and win those games. Do we want to be a sub-.500 team in the conference, a .500 team or above .500? The choice is ours to make."
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