DAHILL
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A&M pitcher tosses perfect game after series of one-hitters
Tasha Sloan had flirted with a no-hitter before in college. She tossed a one-hitter in a 1-0 win over Austin Peay in March and back-to-back one-hitters in a pair of wins against Jackson State last month.
But then came Friday.
That's when Sloan delivered what is believed to be the first perfect game in Alabama A&M history in a 4-0 victory over Southwestern Athletic Conference foe Mississippi Valley State.
"I felt good going into the game," Sloan said Tuesday. "I struck out the first six batters I faced. I realized I was throwing a no-hitter in the fourth inning and I just tried to keep it going."
Sloan will try to keep it going Thursday when A&M (23-37) takes on Southern in the SWAC Tournament in Houston. The Lady Bulldogs and the Lady Jaguars split a four-game series in March.
"We played them early in the year when we weren't playing well," Sloan said. "We've gotten it going lately."
Sloan has been a big reason A&M is playing well. She is 10-3 in her last 13 starts after beginning the season 8-12.
"She's on fire right now," A&M coach Diana Kendrick said of her ace. "She's been phenomenal."
Sloan has a 2.28 ERA to go along with her 18-15 record. She's thrown 32 complete games and six shutouts. She has 239 strikeouts in 2142/3 innings and opponents are hitting just .221 against her.
As strong as she's been on the mound, she's also been quite productive at the plate. Sloan is A&M's second-leading hitter, batting .304 with a homer and 20 RBIs.
She is tied for the team lead with 52 hits and is second on the team with 32 runs scored and stolen bases with 17.
"Tasha has had a great year," Kendrick said. "She's been the heart and soul of our team."
If Sloan had had her way, she wouldn't be playing softball at all.
She grew up wanting to be a gymnast. After her mother remarried, her stepfather, a former college baseball player, got her interested in softball.
"I missed gymnastics for a couple of years," she said. "There were a couple of years I didn't want to play, but my parents made me stick with it. They were determined that I was going to play softball and I'm glad I did."
Sloan started playing when she was 12 and started pitching a year later. She heard about A&M two years ago and came for a visit and fell in love with the place.
"I wanted to go to a smaller Division I school," Sloan said. "I came for a visit and it was very beautiful. I liked the girls. I liked the coach.
<b>"I went to a football game and a basketball game and I liked the school. My experience here has been everything I hoped it would be." </b>
...... what she really is saying... "I got around all those Blacks folks and didnt know how to act" lol
full story at http://www.al.com/sports/huntsvilletimes/index.ssf?/base/sports/1083779116309422.xml
Tasha Sloan had flirted with a no-hitter before in college. She tossed a one-hitter in a 1-0 win over Austin Peay in March and back-to-back one-hitters in a pair of wins against Jackson State last month.
But then came Friday.
That's when Sloan delivered what is believed to be the first perfect game in Alabama A&M history in a 4-0 victory over Southwestern Athletic Conference foe Mississippi Valley State.
"I felt good going into the game," Sloan said Tuesday. "I struck out the first six batters I faced. I realized I was throwing a no-hitter in the fourth inning and I just tried to keep it going."
Sloan will try to keep it going Thursday when A&M (23-37) takes on Southern in the SWAC Tournament in Houston. The Lady Bulldogs and the Lady Jaguars split a four-game series in March.
"We played them early in the year when we weren't playing well," Sloan said. "We've gotten it going lately."
Sloan has been a big reason A&M is playing well. She is 10-3 in her last 13 starts after beginning the season 8-12.
"She's on fire right now," A&M coach Diana Kendrick said of her ace. "She's been phenomenal."
Sloan has a 2.28 ERA to go along with her 18-15 record. She's thrown 32 complete games and six shutouts. She has 239 strikeouts in 2142/3 innings and opponents are hitting just .221 against her.
As strong as she's been on the mound, she's also been quite productive at the plate. Sloan is A&M's second-leading hitter, batting .304 with a homer and 20 RBIs.
She is tied for the team lead with 52 hits and is second on the team with 32 runs scored and stolen bases with 17.
"Tasha has had a great year," Kendrick said. "She's been the heart and soul of our team."
If Sloan had had her way, she wouldn't be playing softball at all.
She grew up wanting to be a gymnast. After her mother remarried, her stepfather, a former college baseball player, got her interested in softball.
"I missed gymnastics for a couple of years," she said. "There were a couple of years I didn't want to play, but my parents made me stick with it. They were determined that I was going to play softball and I'm glad I did."
Sloan started playing when she was 12 and started pitching a year later. She heard about A&M two years ago and came for a visit and fell in love with the place.
"I wanted to go to a smaller Division I school," Sloan said. "I came for a visit and it was very beautiful. I liked the girls. I liked the coach.
<b>"I went to a football game and a basketball game and I liked the school. My experience here has been everything I hoped it would be." </b>
...... what she really is saying... "I got around all those Blacks folks and didnt know how to act" lol
full story at http://www.al.com/sports/huntsvilletimes/index.ssf?/base/sports/1083779116309422.xml