Tuesday, April 24, 2018

Softball sweeps through pool play

Last Friday, the Oran High School softball team participated in the Inaugural Old Settlement softball tournament, hosted by Sainte Genevieve,  Valle Catholic and Park Hill Central High Schools.

In game one, the Lady Eagles faced off against the Ste. Gen Dragons, a team they had defeated about three weeks earlier 23-11.  Oran had scored 13 unearned runs in the seventh and held on to pick up the come from behind victory on a cold drizzly evening.

This time the conditions were much better, albeit, still chilly and the score reflected the better playing conditions.  Once again, Oran came back to win.  This time 6-5.

In fact, the game was scoreless heading into the top of the third inning,  Kaylee Payne singled with two down.  She stole second and scored on Leah Cauble's double.  Cauble would score on an error on a ball hit by Claire Ramsey.

The Dragons would take the lead in the bottom of the fourth.  Starter Alyssa Spane had retired nine of the ten batters she had faced so far, the only one reaching base did so on an error.  But in the fourth, the first two Ste. Gen batters hit back to back solo homers over the left field fence.  The next batter singled but was gunned down trying to steal by Ramsey.  A double followed.  She scored on the next batter's single.  That batter, however, was thrown out trying to extend it to a double.  After the dust had settled, Oran trailed 3-2.

The Eagles would tie it in the fifth.

Ramsey hit a leadoff double.  Her courtesy runner, Kennedi McVay would score on Samantha Welter's single.  Welter would cross on an outfield error on a ball hit by Taylor Lowes.

Oran added another tally in the sixth.

With the top of the order up, Sydney Kern and Payne both grounded out on one pitch each.  Cauble the stroked the first pitch she saw over the center field fence to make the score 5-3 in the Eagle favor.

The Dragons would get back even in their half of the sixth, though.

A one-out double was followed by a pair of two-out errors to knot the game at five.

Jessie Long led off the seventh with an infield single and moved to second with the help of an error on the play.  Baylee Kern entered to pinch run.  Welter put down a sacrifice bunt and reached safely after a throwing error, an error that allowed Kern to score.  Katelyn Streeter would pick up a single but the Eagles could not add any insurance.

Ste. Gen. made it interesting in the bottom of the seventh.

Two-out back to back singles had runners on second and third.  The clean-up batter was intentionally walked to load them up.  Spane got a ground ball, a slow bounder toward short, a charging Payne, gloved, threw and recorded the out on a bang-bang play at first.

Spane improved to 5-0, she allowed on five runs, three earned on nine hits.  She walked two, one intentionally and struck out two.

At the dish, Payne, Cauble and Long each had two hits.  Cauble and Welter both had a pair of RBI

Coach Jim Eftink said, "Friday night's game against Ste gen was a struggle. We couldn’t get the big hit when we needed it. We had the bases loaded at one point and came up empty. We were lucky to come out of that game with a win."

In game two, Oran took on the Arcadia Valley Lady Tigers.

The Eagles scored six in the first and coasted to an 11-0 five-inning mercy-rule win.

Spane tossed the first inning and was credited with the win.  She gave up one hit.  Ramsey went the rest of the way, walking five and striking out five and allowing no hits.

Ramsey and Streeter both went 2-3.  Ramsey drove in 3 while Streeter knocked in 2.

Ramsey had a double as did Cauble.

Eftink said, "The Arcadia Valley game was more of a challenge than the score indicates.  My hat goes off to Claire who provided us with some innings, giving Alyssa a chance to rest."

The two wins moved the season mark to 10-1 and propelled the Lady Eagles into Saturday' s Gold bracket action.




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