The first two games of the season on their own diamond hardly turned out the way the Perry softball team would have hoped, as first Carroll, and then Boone, scored lopsided wins over the Jayettes in Raccoon River Conference play Wednesday and Thursday.[wpedon id=”82220″ align=”center”]
Thursday’s contest saw Boone (3-5) rally from a 2-1 hole with four runs in the fifth before piling on six more in the sixth for an 11-3 win.
Boone scored once in the top of the first, but Perry (0-4, 0-2) countered when Jo Diw singled and took second base on an outfield error. She moved to third on a passed ball, then tied the game by sprinting home on a sacrifice fly from Sid Vancil.
Perry grabbed a 2-1 lead in the fourth when Adriana Eastman doubled and crossed the plate on a two-out single from eighth grader Jayna Kenney.
The Toreadors suddenly came alive in the fifth. A walk, single, and an error was followed by a RBI-ground out to tie the game. Three consecutive singles, a walk and a sacrifice fly sent three more runs across the dish to create a 5-2 lead.
That chased Jayette starter Alyssa Kruger, who allowed five runs (four earned) on eight hits and three walks while striking out one in five frames.
Kenney relieved and was treated roughly, as Boone ripped seven singles (two of which were misplayed by the outfield, each allowing extra bases) and a two-run double by Lauren Calkins as the gap swelled to 11-2.
Perry added a final run in the seventh when eighth-grade Peyton Tunink, who had walked in the fourth, reached on a base hit. She swiped second, with Diw walking. A force out moved Tunink to third and put Vancil on first. A double-steal followed, with Vancil out at second as Tunink scored. Kruger walked and Gabby West singled, but a strikeout ended the game.
Kenney, who had two singles and her first RBI, was charged with six runs on nine hits during two innings in the pitching circle. She tallied one strikeout.
Emma Dighton went all seven frames for the visitors, surrendering three runs (two earned) on nine hits and three walks while striking out eight.
T.J. Sheehy’s one-out double second and a Kruger base hit in the fifth accounted for the remainder of the Perry offense.
Caitlynne Shadle, Zoey Hightshoe, and Ellen Castle were all 3-for-5 for Boone, with Jordan Trowbridge hitting a double, as did Calkins, who had three RBIs. Hightshoe had two RBIs, while Castle stole three bases and Shadle scored three times.
Perry had taken a 1-0 lead over Carroll Wednesday on a Kruger RBI-hit that scored Vancil, but the Tigers (4-2, 1-1) scored five times in the second with two of their three home runs coming in the frame.
Vancil singled in Diw in the third, but four Carroll runs in the fourth, two in the fifth and two in the seventh created a 13-2 gulf.
Kruger doubled in both Diw and Vancil in the bottom of the seventh, but Perry could come no closer.
Vancil was 3-for-4 with two runs, two steals and a RBI, with Kruger driving in two with a single and a double, with Diw and West adding base hits. Diw scored twice and also stole a base to aid the Perry cause.
Kenney started and lasted 1-2/3 frames, allowing five runs (two earned) on four hits. Kruger came in to toss 3-1/3 innings of middle relief, surrendering six runs on eight hits and two walks, with Tunink touched for two runs on five hits and a walk in two frames of work. Kruger had three strikeouts and Tunink one.
Julia LaRue earned the win. She yielded four runs on seven hits and four walks while fanning five in seven innings.
Laura Sweeney was 4-for-5 with a home run, four RBIs and three stolen bases, with LaRue helping herself by batting 4-for-4. Taylor Lux went deep twice and added a single while driving in four runs, with Ashley Onken hitting two singles and a double.
Perry hosts the annual Paul and Mary Ann Graves Classic Saturday. They will play IKM-Manning at 9:30 a.m. with Van Meter meeting Interstate-35 at 11:15 a.m. The consolation game will begin at approximately 1 p.m. with the title contest at 2:45 p.m.
