SPORTS CORRESPONDENT

It was pretty, quick and painless, for one, and, ugly, quick and painful for the other, as rivals battled it out in girls fastpitch with Decatur beating visting Federal Way, 11-1 in a five-inning mercy rule-shortened game April 10.

The Gators and Eagles both need to improve to make it into the playoffs. The gold and navy blue are 2-4 in the South Puget Sound League North and have a fair shot to pigeon their way in while the blue and white dropped to 1-5 and their shot looks like hitting a clay eagle while blindfolded.

But the positives first for the Gators. They have outscored their opponents now, 27-2, in their last two games, something to hold up to the mirror, so to speak. They beat Kent-Meridian before this game, 16-1.

"We are coming together as a team," said Gators coach Naomi Fenton. "We need some more wins," "It's a tough, new league for us, of course. We want to compete."

The North and South re-aligned and made it so that Federal Way, Decatur and Thomas Jefferson all now play against the Kent schools and Tahoma, all of which, but K-M, sit atop the standings.

As for the Eagles, they are just happy to have already played strong enough to have eclipsed last year's overall season record, which was, fair to say, a pain-filled season.

"We are recovering from a 1-19 season last year, and we are already doing better than that this season," said Eagles head coach Rosemarie Burke, putting a positive spin on things of another season that looks like it will spiral out of playoff control. But Burke said, "doing better," is good news for the Eagles, who have already won three games total more this season than last (3-7), while the Gators overall are 3-4.

And one last thing Burke wanted to add about her bevy of beauties. They are all, win or lose, just as that past February Grammy winning male singer said in his winning song, "beautiful to me."

This game overall played out with a little competitiveness at first dwindling to not so much to be excited about.

The Gators took advantage of walks and a miscue in the bottom half of the first inning. Opening the action was Lindsey Bright who walked, as did Katie Mask, before Laura Bressler came to the plate for an RBI single. Then Kendal Nakashima was issued a walk and when the smoke cleared to end the first after another error or two, it was 5-0 Gators.

The bats were somewhat error-free to begin the top of the second for the Lady Eagles as they brought in a run when Cassie Sahagun hit in Alie Provo.

So, ahead 5-1 going into the second, the Gators weren't done yet, not even close. They scored more runs on, yeah, more Eagles errors, the infield made a couple, not naming positions or names for that matter, before it was up to bat for Bressler, who again singled in a run.

Then it was Nakashima after that, who maybe should have been walked a second time in the game because she ripped the ball up the middle and it was good enough away from the outfielders to score two.

In the fourth, after Lauren Westberg pitched another good inning in this one-earned-run-on-her affair, the Gators scored some more, four more runs from the usual suspects, lifting the ball into various parts of the outfield. After a first infield error on a Kelsey Disbrow hit, Lindsey Bright dsingled, Bressler singled, Nakashima doubled and Courtney Gross singled. That was enough offense to shine the lights of gory for one and glory for the other.