UNION — As a senior, Clarkdale pitcher Reann Chatham has accumulated enough experiences in the circle to earn the trust of Lady Bulldogs coach Emily Howard.

So when Clarkdale took a five-run lead over Union into the bottom of the seventh inning, it was only natural that Howard had full confidence in Chatham to close out the win.

Union scored two runs in the frame, but Chatham induced the Lady Yellowjackets third out when she snagged a line drive from Union’s Maloree Rigdon.

Behind Chatham’s arm and her third-inning home run, Clarkdale defeated Union 7-4 Tuesday night in slow-pitch softball action to give the Lady Bulldogs their third win in a row. 

“Somebody’s got to do it, and there are nine other girls on the field who I have complete confidence in that could have done it — it just happened to be me,” Chatham said. “Coach Howard prepares us for just about every situation.”

Union (2-6) darted out to a two-run lead by the bottom of the second inning, but Chatham settled down and yielded just five Lady Yellowjackets hits and no runs between the third and sixth innings. 

“She did a fantastic job pitching tonight, and really worked her arch and made the adjustments she needed to when she didn’t get a call behind the plate,” Howard said. “She made those adjustments on her own, and was very successful working her arch inside and outside. I’m very proud of the way she was out there on the mound.”

Clarkdale (6-5) was propelled by a seven-hit, five-run top of the third that saw the Lady Bulldogs take a 5-2 lead. Chatham’s two-run shot, and RBIs from Makayla Roberts, Ashley McLeod and Maggie Meadows provided the offense.

“The third inning was big for us,” Howard said. “We’ve done a poor job of coming out at the beginning of the game and coming out hot — we want to wait until the end of the game. So I’m super proud of the kids tonight. They came out early. It’s a great time of the year for us to make those adjustments.”

The Lady Bulldogs added two more runs in the top of the fourth when Roberts launched a solo home run, and McLeod added an RBI on a hit that appeared to be a home run before umpires overturned the initial ruling.

Roberts went 4-for-4 at the plate for the Lady Bulldogs.

Mackenzie Dolan plated Macy Lott in the bottom of the first, and Anna Ridgon hit a solo home run in the bottom of the second for the Lady Yellowjackets to give them an early lead. Lilly Burton and Parker Breland notched RBIs in the bottom of the seventh.  

Burton led Union with three hits, while Ridgon, Dolan and Lilly Burton collected two hits apiece. 

Tuesday’s loss is the Lady Yellowjackets’ fifth consecutive, but coach Jacob Casey said he and his players aren’t looking behind themselves. 

“All we have to do is look forward,” Casey said. “The good thing about the 2-6 record we have is (that) none of it is district… Ultimately, district is what gets you to the playoffs, and district is what helps you win a state championship. Win, lose or draw, whether we’re playing great or whether we’re playing badly, however we’re playing right now, we have a brand new season coming up Tuesday.”

Up next: Clarkdale hosts Stringer at 7 p.m. on Sept. 7, and Union travels to Sebastopol on Sept. 5.