Lady ’Stangs Suffer First Loss
After 16 straight wins to start the 2020 season, the McDonald County High School softball team finally lost a game.
The loss came in the championship game of the Warrensburg High School Softball Tournament held on Sept. 25-26 at the University of Central Missouri in Warrensburg.
Class 2 power Sherwood, after beating Webb City in the semifinals, claimed a 10-0 decision over the Lady Mustangs for the tournament championship.
Arizona State commit Mac Morgan shutout the Lady Mustangs on three hits, while the Lady Marksmen scored 10 runs on 13 hits, including three doubles and a home run.
Sherwood broke a scoreless tie in the third by erupting for nine runs on nine hits, including a threerun homer by Katelynn Diggs. Diggs doubled and scored in the sixth to bring the game to an end. Madeline McCall started and took the loss while Alexa Hopkins came in relief in the third.
Carlle Cooper had two of the three McDonald County hits, while Katelynn Townsend had the other.
McCall tossed a three-hit shutout to lead McDonald County to a 1-0 win over Blair Oaks in the semifinals. The junior right-hander struck out 12 and walked just one.
McDonald County scored the game’s only run in the fourth. McCall reached on a two- out walk. Pinch-runner Melanie Gillming went to second on a wild pitch before scoring on a single by Nevaeh Dodson.
Dodson added a single in the seventh and the only other Lady Mustang hit was a bunt hit by Mariana Salas in the third.
After winning both of its pool games, McDonald County opened bracket play with a 9-2 win over
Centralia. Alexa Hopkins allowed two runs on seven hits while striking out seven and walking none for the win.
McCall had a pair of two- run homers and Hopkins added another to lead the offense. McCall, Hopkins and Deorica Zamora finished with two hits each, while Reagan Myrick, Adasyn Leach and Dodson all had one hit.
McDonald County opened the tournament with wins over Clinton and Belton in pool play.
Against Clinton, the Lady Mustangs scored 11 runs in the first and added eight more in the second to claim a 19-2 win in three innings.
Hopkins worked the first two innings, allowing a run on a hit, while Dodson allowed a run on a hit in the third.
Dodson, Hopkins and Salas had two hits each to lead the offense while Cooper, Myrick, McCall, Leach and Zamora had one hit each. McCall earned the win in the Lady Mustangs’ 10-6 win over Belton, allowing six runs on eight hits while striking out nine and walking none.
Dodson and Hopkins had three hits. McCall, Townsend and Zamora had two, including McCall’s first of three homers in the tournament. Myrick, Leach and Salas had one hit each.
“I felt like we had a great tournament,” said coach Heath Alumbaugh. “We knew the deeper we went in the tournament the higher the level we would have to play at. I felt like we stepped up our game to get a big win over Blair Oaks and get into the championship game. In the championship game, we faced probably the best pitcher we’ll see all year. Mac Morgan is committed to Arizona State and she showed why.”
McCall and Hopkins were named to the All-Tournament team following Saturday’s championship game.
Wyandotte
McDona ld County bounced back after its loss with a 9-2 win over Wyandotte on Sept. 28 at Wyandotte High School.
Hopkins allowed two runs on five hits in five innings before McCall allowed one hit in two innings of relief.
Cooper had a pair of homers and Salas added another to lead the offense. Dodson, Leach and Zamora added one hit each.
McDona ld County improved to 17-1 heading into its Oct. 1 game against Logan-Rogersville at MCHS. Game time is 4:30 p.m.
Nevada
McCall shut out Nevada on four hits to lead McDonald County to an 8-0 win on Sept. 24 at MCHS, striking out 15 and walking none.
The game was scoreless until the Lady Mustangs scored two runs in the fourth inning and three in the fifth and sixth.
Cooper and Dodson had three hits and Salas two to lead the offense. Townsend, Myrick, McCall, Hopkins, Leach and Zamora added one hit each.