HESSVILLE | On May 10, a team will usually have a pretty good idea what its lineup will be come sectional time.
However, Morton coach Matt Barno is still tinkering with his.
It turned out to work wonders on Thursday night, as he moved his normal No. 3 hitter Ashley Rossi down to the six spot and all she did was finish 2-for-3 with a double, two RBI, and a run in Times No. 10 Morton's 7-1 win against Whiting in nonconference action.
"Ashley was in a little bit of a slump, so I moved her down in the order so there's not as much pressure," Barno said. "It helped her relax."
Whiting (8-13) scored its only run on by far the weirdest play of the game.
After Jessica Butler roped a triple, Alexis Hrabovsky squibbed one to the pitcher, who then threw it home only to find the catcher not covering the plate and Butler raced home.
That's all that Morton ace Angelica Justiniano would give up, as she tossed a complete game while allowing six hits.
"Angie is so consistent and a good ground-ball pitcher," said Barno. "She knows how to hit her spots, is reliable and is overall very strong mentally."
After that it was all Morton (17-1), as Rossi drove in catcher Cierra Charbonneau for the first Governor run.
"I don't really feel the pressure when I'm up there," said Rossi. "I just focus on staying wide and leveled."
She later added an RBI-double to highlight a five-run Morton sixth and put the game out of reach, as the Oilers committed two of their four errors in the sixth alone.
"We've had this happen to us a lot of times where we've had just one bad inning," Whiting coach Paul Laub said. "We have seven new starters and are just inexperienced."
Please Wait…