5th inning propels Whiteoak past Hillsboro
Lead Summary
By
Stephen Forsha-sforsha@gmail.com
MOWRYSTOWN — Both the Whiteoak Lady Wildcats and Hillsboro Lady Indians battled cold conditions on Saturday afternoon, with the two teams looking for their first win of the season.
In a closely played game, it was a four-run fifth inning by the Lady ’Cats and their ability to fend off the Lady Indians the rest of the way that saw the host Whiteoak team gain a non-conference win by an 8-7 score.
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Whiteoak was the first to score runs in the game by putting up three runs on their side of the scoreboard in the bottom of the second inning for a 3-0 advantage.
In the inning, Courtney Gross led off with a base hit, and after two consecutive outs, Katelyn Everhart reached the bases, as did Alex Greene and Destiny Price, who hit a double to right field. Scoring runs in the inning were Gross, Everhart (who had a courtesy runner) and Greene.
“The girls played good, they executed good, they worked hard and it paid off,” WHS head coach Mike Ames said. “It took us a while to find the right players for the right positions, and we are still struggling with that, but we are getting there.”
Hillsboro cut the WHS lead down to one run after having a two-run third inning with Ashley Lykins and Jordan Moberly rounding the bases, as both HHS runs also were scored with two outs. In the inning, Lykins singled and Riley Moberly hit a double.
The Lady Indians took the lead in the top of the fourth inning with Mallory Parsons and Reagan Kiley scoring runs for a 4-3 lead.
WHS tied the game in the bottom of the fourth with Megan Botts scoring a run.
The Lady Indians scored a run in the top of the fifth with Riley Moberly scoring a run to move the Lady Indians in front by a 5-4 score.
Whiteoak had the final answer with a four-run fifth inning as Maddison Berkley, Gross, Botts and Sydnie Raines all scored runs. In the inning, Botts reached the bases on an error, and Raines hit a double. Berkley also reached the bases on an error in the infield, and Gross hit a ball to centerfield.
“We were able to put a string of at-bats together, and that is what we are going to try to continue to do,” Ames said. “All of the girls played hard, and I was proud of them for playing hard.”
Hillsboro made the score closer by scoring two runs in the top of the sixth with Jordan Moberly and Jordan Williamson making it a 8-7 deficit with two runs scored. That was as close as the Lady Indians got to the lead, with the Lady Wildcats retiring HHS in order in the top of the seventh to seal the win.
Gross was the winning pitcher for WHS, pitching all seven innings. She finished with two strikeouts. Riley Moberly was charged with the loss as she had seven strikeouts in the loss.
In a closely played game, it was a four-run fifth inning by the Lady ’Cats and their ability to fend off the Lady Indians the rest of the way that saw the host Whiteoak team gain a non-conference win by an 8-7 score.
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Whiteoak was the first to score runs in the game by putting up three runs on their side of the scoreboard in the bottom of the second inning for a 3-0 advantage.
In the inning, Courtney Gross led off with a base hit, and after two consecutive outs, Katelyn Everhart reached the bases, as did Alex Greene and Destiny Price, who hit a double to right field. Scoring runs in the inning were Gross, Everhart (who had a courtesy runner) and Greene.
“The girls played good, they executed good, they worked hard and it paid off,” WHS head coach Mike Ames said. “It took us a while to find the right players for the right positions, and we are still struggling with that, but we are getting there.”
Hillsboro cut the WHS lead down to one run after having a two-run third inning with Ashley Lykins and Jordan Moberly rounding the bases, as both HHS runs also were scored with two outs. In the inning, Lykins singled and Riley Moberly hit a double.
The Lady Indians took the lead in the top of the fourth inning with Mallory Parsons and Reagan Kiley scoring runs for a 4-3 lead.
WHS tied the game in the bottom of the fourth with Megan Botts scoring a run.
The Lady Indians scored a run in the top of the fifth with Riley Moberly scoring a run to move the Lady Indians in front by a 5-4 score.
Whiteoak had the final answer with a four-run fifth inning as Maddison Berkley, Gross, Botts and Sydnie Raines all scored runs. In the inning, Botts reached the bases on an error, and Raines hit a double. Berkley also reached the bases on an error in the infield, and Gross hit a ball to centerfield.
“We were able to put a string of at-bats together, and that is what we are going to try to continue to do,” Ames said. “All of the girls played hard, and I was proud of them for playing hard.”
Hillsboro made the score closer by scoring two runs in the top of the sixth with Jordan Moberly and Jordan Williamson making it a 8-7 deficit with two runs scored. That was as close as the Lady Indians got to the lead, with the Lady Wildcats retiring HHS in order in the top of the seventh to seal the win.
Gross was the winning pitcher for WHS, pitching all seven innings. She finished with two strikeouts. Riley Moberly was charged with the loss as she had seven strikeouts in the loss.