Ladies Enjoy Merry-Go-Round
Harrison Bader has nothing on the McDonald County High School Lady Mustang softball team.
With the score tied at 9-9 with two out and the bases loaded in the top of the ninth inning on Monday night at Joplin High School, a simple ground ball to second by Chloe Colvin started a Lady Mustang merry-go-round.
Colvin’s grounder ticked off the glove of Joplin second baseman Jocee Weston, allowing Caitlin Hall to score the go-ahead run for the Lady Mustangs. Kristin Cornell, running from second base, was
not satisfied with one run on the error and kept on going when she reached third, just beating Weston’s throw to the plate. When Weston’s throw got loose from catcher Clarissa Harns, McDonald County’s Rita Santillan scored the third run on the play, knocking the ball loose from pitcher Ayden Perrin and allowing Colvin to score.
The four runs gave McDonald County a 13-9 win, overcoming a first-inning grand slam by Cierra Barber and a two-out game-tying home run by Lacy Snyder in the bottom of the seventh to send the game to extra innings.
McDonald County trailed 5-3 after two innings before scoring four runs in the top of the third. Whitney Kinser’s single and walks to Madeline McCall and Leslie Yousey loaded the bases with two outs. Kinser scored the first run of the inning on a wild pitch before Cornell drove in a run with a single. Santillan then hit her second consecutive double to drive in two runs.
McDonald County stretched its lead to 8-5 with a run in the fourth before Joplin scored two in the fifth to cut the lead to 8-7. Santillan gave McDonald County an insurance run in the top of the sixth with her first homer of the season.
But Joplin cut the lead to 9-8 in the sixth, setting the stage for Snyder’s homer in the seventh to tie the game and the Lady Mustangs’ fourrun uprising in the top of the ninth.
Santillan finished with three hits, four RBIs and three runs scored to lead the Lady Mustang offense. Kinser added three hits, while Colvin, Kylie Helm and Cornell had two each and Yousey and Kaylee Cornell both had one.
McCall started and went two innings, allowing five runs on four hits and three walks. Alexa Hopkins got the win, working the final seven innings, allowing four runs on 10 hits.
McDonald County was at East Newton on Aug.28 before hosting Marshfield on Aug. 30. Game time is 4:30 p.m.
Carthage
McDonald County opened its 2018 season with a 4-1 over Carthage on Aug. 24 at MCHS.
Hopkins got the win, tossing a complete game six-hitter, striking out four.
The Lady Mustangs opened the scoring in the first on consecutive singles by Santillan, Colvin and Helm to give McDonald County a 2-0 lead.
Carthage cut the lead to 2-1 in the third with an unearned run before the Lady Mustangs added a pair of insurance runs in the fifth.
Santillan was hit by a pitch and scored on a double by Colvin. Helm singled to drive in Colvin with the final run of the game.
Colvin and Helm had two hits each to lead the Lady Mustang offense, while Santillan, Hopkins and Yousey had one hit each.