Pagen Ks Carson

MINDEN -- The Carson Senators had a couple of strikes working against them in their season and Sierra League softball opener against Douglas on Thursday.

First, Douglas was coming off a loss in its opener two days before and the Tigers were determined to avoid an 0-2 start. Second, ace pitcher Katie Pagen was on top of her game.

What Carson saw as a result was a lot of strike threes -- 16 to be precise -- as Pagen pitched a complete game three-hit shutout and the Tigers came away with a 6-0 victory on a windy afternoon.

Val Smith doubled twice and drove in two runs and Pagen helped her own cause with two hits and two RBIs for Douglas in a game that was frequently delayed for brief periods of time due to strong gusts. Coach Rick Smith was obviously glad to see the Tigers rebound from their 3-2 loss against Reno on Tuesday.

"I was happy with the win," Smith said. "We had to come back and it was nice to see the girls respond from the loss."

At the same time, Carson coach John Sullivan wasn't disappointed with his team's performance in its opener.

"I thought it was a good ball game," Sullivan said. "For our first game, especially with the weather, I thought the girls played pretty well. We executed some things we've been working on; we kept our errors to a minimum and we're going to get better as the season goes on."

Pagen, who earned Sierra League Pitcher of the Year honors in 2002, was certainly impressive. The 16 strikeouts were a career best -- five of those were called -- she scattered three hits, walked two and hit two batters.

"Katie pitched a heck of a game," Smith said. "She was hitting her spots, moving the ball in and out. She was just dominating."

Carson's best scoring opportunity came in the fourth inning. Lindsey Perondi drew a one-out walk and Kelli Cahill hit a sharp grounder up the middle for a base hit. Kaitie Vidovich walked to load the bases with two outs, but then Pagen struck out Natalie Mandoki to retire the side.

Douglas took a 2-0 lead in the first inning when Brittany Puzey singled and scored when Val Smith doubled to left to make it 1-0. Smith later scored on a passed ball.

Stevie Smith singled to lead off the second, advanced on Kelli McKinnon's sacrifice bunt and scored on Pagen's double off the left field fence. Pagen scored on an error to give the Tigers a 4-0 lead.

The Tigers scored their last two runs in the fourth, keyed by doubles by Val Smith and McKinnon. Carson avoided another run when catcher Ariande Gonzalez and shortstop Heather Diamond collaborated on a double steal play and cut down a run at the plate.

Mandy Carvin pitched the distance for Carson, allowed nine hits, struck out six and walked four.

"I thought Mandy pitched a pretty good game," Sullivan said.

Stevie Smith, Val Smith and Pagen had two hits each to lead the Tigers offensively.

"It was nice to see the girls hit the ball today," Smith said. "We've been struggling with the bat, but they did a good job swinging it today."

Liz Rankl, Gonzalez and Cahill had one hit each for the Senators, who host South Tahoe in a league doubleheader at 10 a.m. on Saturday.

Douglas returns to action Tuesday at home against North Valleys.