SOFTBALL: Fresh start - Trio of freshmen carry PCHS past Waltonville
If Wednesday's season opener is any indication, the kids are for real.
Freshmen drove in nine of Pinckneyville's eleven runs and the Lady Panthers blasted Waltonville 11-2 at Greg Hale Field, scoring at least one run in all six innings they came to the plate. Kylee Kling, Mariah Clark and Emma Banach - all PCHS freshmen - combined to go 8-for-15 on offense with 5 doubles.
"The young kids showed up and did a good job," said Pinckneyville head coach Alan Engelhardt. "I was really pleased. Sometimes you get some nerves stepping onto the field for the first time, but I saw lots of nice things from them today."
Clark also got the start in the pitching circle and got through Waltonville's order once without allowing a hit, but ran into some trouble in the third and fourth innings before Brooklyn Morrow took over with two outs in the fourth and shut down the Lady Spartans from there.
"Mariah struggled spotting a little bit today, but like we talked about, part of that was nerves," Engelhardt said. "Brooklyn came in and did a nice job as well. It's nice to go right-left and have a little change of pace that way, one who likes to throw down, one who likes to throw up."
"We were solid in the field. We've got some things we need to tweak and work on as far as knowing where to be, but I thought we were pretty solid."
Offensively, the Lady Panthers got on the board early and often. Three straight two-out hits from Morrow, Clark and Banach made it 1-0 in the bottom of the first inning.
Kling and Kearsten Opp added RBIs in the second, Banach drove in a run in the third then scored on an error, and Kling plated Andrea Morgan with a sacrifice fly in the fourth to make it 7-2 Pinckneyville.
Kling then delivered a two-run double in the fifth, and Banach did the same in the sixth to wrap up the scoring.
Banach finished the day 4-for-4 (2B) with a run scored, three driven in. Kling (2-3, 5 RBI, 2B, SAC), Clark (2-4, RBI, 2 2B) and Andrea Morgan (2-3, R) also had multi-hit games for the Lady Panthers. Morrow (1-3, R, BB), Josie Gleason (1-4) and Caitie Opp (1-2) each had a hit apiece.
Clark went three and two-thirds innings and gave up five hits and three walks, striking out three. Morrow tossed three and a third, allowed two hits, walked none and fanned a pair.
Hannah Garascia (2-2, R, 2 HBP), Gretchen Witter (2-4), Hannah WItter (1-3, R, BB), Olivia Massie (1-3, 2 RBI, BB) and Katie Metcalf (1-3, BB) had Waltonville's seven hits.
Pinckneyville travels to Herrin on Thursday, and to Okawville on Friday.