Despite piecing together a nine-hit performance, the Thunderbirds struggled to get on the scoreboard and had some miscues in the circle as they fell for the first time this spring 8-3 at the hands of Ridgefield on Friday night.
The two pitchers for Tumwater – Sarah Stevens and Ella Ferguson – combined for five walks and just seven strikeouts. The latter got an average of one run per inning scored off her and plunked two batters while the former threw a wild pitch.
Ridgefield took the lead with a three-run top of the second then put the game out of reach with a four-run fourth. Two of three runs by the Thunderbirds (2-1) were solo home runs, one by Jaime Haase in the third and the other by pinch hitter Erika Schook in the seventh.
Avery Sugg tallied two hits for Tumwater as did Ferguson with one of them being a double.
