Pitchers’ duel sends Miami Trace softball past Hillsboro
Lead Summary
By
Stephen Forsha-sforsha@gmail.com
Hillsboro freshman Gracey Dearmon and Miami Trace’s Olivia Wolffe put on a clinic in softball pitching on Monday night in what was a Frontier Athletic Conference pitchers' duel for the ages, though it was Miami Trace who took home the win back to Fayette County by a 1-0 score.
Dearmon allowed just one hit and walked four batters in the loss. The freshman allowed one run (unearned) and finished with 14 strikeouts.
Meanwhile, Wolffe of Miami Trace (6-0) allowed two hits and walked one batter in the win. She allowed no runs and finished with 13 strikeouts.
“Both pitchers pitched really good games, and a 1-0 score isn’t something you see too often,” HHS head coach Katie Moberly said. “Miami Trace has 10 seniors on their team, and every day for us is a building process and our kids have nothing to hang their heads about.
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“Our pitching has been really good lately. We are starting to figure it out. Gracey is a freshman and has figured out if you are aggressive, it helps you out a lot. Christine also pitched a great game on Saturday against Whiteoak … so they are getting their work in. There is no rest for the weary with our schedule, and they are taking it and working. It is great to have the pitchers we have, and it is a luxury that we haven’t had in a while, so it is nice to see.”
Miami Trace scored the lone run of the game in the top of the first inning, and it was leadoff batter Kaylee Hauck who drew a walk to start the FAC game. Hauck stole second base, moved to third on a ground ball for the second out of the game and scored what became the lone run of the game on a passed ball.
In that top of the first inning, Dearmon of Hillsboro struck out two batters, and from there she went on a tear in the pitcher’s circle with three straight strikeouts in the second, followed by a strikeout to end the third inning.
The fourth inning saw Wolffe draw a walk, steal second and take third on a passed ball. That was as much as the opposing pitcher would help her own cause on the bases in the inning, as Dearmon struck out the next three batters in the fourth.
Miami Trace forced a walk at the top of the fifth inning, but a 5-4 double play drew two outs, and the inning ended once again with a strikeout by Dearmon. The HHS freshman continued the strikeout tear with a strikeout to start the top of the sixth inning.
From there, MTHS had a base hit from Hauck, as she also stole second base. She was left stranded at third followed by a fly ball to centerfield caught by Jordan Moberly and a pop up to first base caught by Zoe Grove.
The top of the seventh inning saw Dearmon keep the Lady Panthers from scoring a run as she struck out the first batter of the inning, and following a walk, Dearmon forced a pop up caught by catcher Jo Myers and another strikeout to end the inning.
As for the Lady Indians, Mallory Parsons gained both of Hillsboro’s hits in the game with a double to lead off the bottom of the first inning, as she moved to second on a one-out forced walk by Dearmon. Both runners were left on the bases with Wolffe striking out the ensuing batter, followed by a fly ball caught in centerfield.
“Mallory started us off with a loud hit, but against a good pitcher like we faced you aren’t going to get many of them, and we were unable to take advantage of it,” Moberly said.
Wolffe struck out two HHS batters in the second inning, and there were three more batters who struck out in order for HHS in the bottom of the third.
HHS went down in order in the fourth inning and the fifth inning, but in the sixth, with one out, Abbie Pettyjohn took first base on a fielder’s choice as Parsons was forced out at second. Parsons began the inning with a single but was left stranded.
The bottom of the eighth saw Wolffe for Miami Trace take care of business with two strikeouts to start the inning, and the game ended on a line drive catch by second baseman Cassidy Lovett, who made an acrobatic catch, robbing the Lady Indians of a potential hit and ending the game.
Dearmon allowed just one hit and walked four batters in the loss. The freshman allowed one run (unearned) and finished with 14 strikeouts.
Meanwhile, Wolffe of Miami Trace (6-0) allowed two hits and walked one batter in the win. She allowed no runs and finished with 13 strikeouts.
“Both pitchers pitched really good games, and a 1-0 score isn’t something you see too often,” HHS head coach Katie Moberly said. “Miami Trace has 10 seniors on their team, and every day for us is a building process and our kids have nothing to hang their heads about.
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“Our pitching has been really good lately. We are starting to figure it out. Gracey is a freshman and has figured out if you are aggressive, it helps you out a lot. Christine also pitched a great game on Saturday against Whiteoak … so they are getting their work in. There is no rest for the weary with our schedule, and they are taking it and working. It is great to have the pitchers we have, and it is a luxury that we haven’t had in a while, so it is nice to see.”
Miami Trace scored the lone run of the game in the top of the first inning, and it was leadoff batter Kaylee Hauck who drew a walk to start the FAC game. Hauck stole second base, moved to third on a ground ball for the second out of the game and scored what became the lone run of the game on a passed ball.
In that top of the first inning, Dearmon of Hillsboro struck out two batters, and from there she went on a tear in the pitcher’s circle with three straight strikeouts in the second, followed by a strikeout to end the third inning.
The fourth inning saw Wolffe draw a walk, steal second and take third on a passed ball. That was as much as the opposing pitcher would help her own cause on the bases in the inning, as Dearmon struck out the next three batters in the fourth.
Miami Trace forced a walk at the top of the fifth inning, but a 5-4 double play drew two outs, and the inning ended once again with a strikeout by Dearmon. The HHS freshman continued the strikeout tear with a strikeout to start the top of the sixth inning.
From there, MTHS had a base hit from Hauck, as she also stole second base. She was left stranded at third followed by a fly ball to centerfield caught by Jordan Moberly and a pop up to first base caught by Zoe Grove.
The top of the seventh inning saw Dearmon keep the Lady Panthers from scoring a run as she struck out the first batter of the inning, and following a walk, Dearmon forced a pop up caught by catcher Jo Myers and another strikeout to end the inning.
As for the Lady Indians, Mallory Parsons gained both of Hillsboro’s hits in the game with a double to lead off the bottom of the first inning, as she moved to second on a one-out forced walk by Dearmon. Both runners were left on the bases with Wolffe striking out the ensuing batter, followed by a fly ball caught in centerfield.
“Mallory started us off with a loud hit, but against a good pitcher like we faced you aren’t going to get many of them, and we were unable to take advantage of it,” Moberly said.
Wolffe struck out two HHS batters in the second inning, and there were three more batters who struck out in order for HHS in the bottom of the third.
HHS went down in order in the fourth inning and the fifth inning, but in the sixth, with one out, Abbie Pettyjohn took first base on a fielder’s choice as Parsons was forced out at second. Parsons began the inning with a single but was left stranded.
The bottom of the eighth saw Wolffe for Miami Trace take care of business with two strikeouts to start the inning, and the game ended on a line drive catch by second baseman Cassidy Lovett, who made an acrobatic catch, robbing the Lady Indians of a potential hit and ending the game.