Manchester Leaves Tying Run At Third; Whitko Gets TRC Win
Manchester Leaves Tying Run At Third; Whitko Gets TRC Win
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Mark Howe-
Manchester Leaves Tying Run At Third; Whitko Gets TRC WinSOUTH WHITLEY – Manchester made just enough physical and mental mistakes in its Three Rivers Conference softball game to give host Whitko a win Wednesday.
And the Wildcats came close to giving it back in pretty much the same manner.
The Squires rallied with two runs in the seventh inning, and left the tying run on third and the go-ahead run at second before Whitko closed out a 4-3 win.
The Squires opened the scoring with a manufactured run in the top of the second. Kindra Stetzel led off with a ground single to center, was sacrificed to second, advanced to third on a wild pitch and scored on Mackenzie Day’s infield single.
The lead stood until Whitko pushed a pair of runs across in the home half of the fourth, with the help of three Squire wild pitches. Elizabeth Miller was hit by a pitch to lead off the frame, and was sacrificed to second.
After a wild pitch moved Miller to third, Shi Bradley stroked an RBI?single to left to tied the game. Bradley advanced to second on another wild pitch, but was thrown out by centerfielder Carsyn Howard on Sarah Hewitt’s single.
Hewitt advanced to second on the third wild pitch of the inning, and scored on Harley Bradley’s double to right center.
The Wildcats scored an insurance run in the fifth when Squire catcher Day dropped Guinevere Garr’s foul pop-up that would have ended the inning. On the next pitch Garr singled to left to drive in Kaycee Sims from third.
Whitko missed its opportunity to blow the game open in its half of the sixth. Hewitt walked to lead off the inning, the only free pass issued by either team. Harley Bradley stroked her second two-bagger of the game to leave runners at second and third with nobody out.
Manchester’s Emma Evans entered the pitcher’s circle in relief of Torina Runkel and limited the damage to a single run on a fielding error.
“We started out strong, then we fell apart in the middle,” Manchester coach Brittany Holmes said. “And then we pulled back through in the seventh inning.
“I told the girls we gotta fight for seven innings, not just a couple, to pull through and win games like this. It was the little things in that middle part that cost use the game.”
Manchester opened its comeback bid with a single by Day, who moved to second on an infield out. Emma Garriott singled to left to put runners at the corners. Day scored on a groundout, and Garriott crossed the plate when Emma West’s hot liner was too much for Wildcat pitcher Ellie Snep to handle.
A dropped throw at first that would have ended the game instead left Squire runners in scoring position before Snep got Evans to ground out to third baseman Miller to end the game.
Whitko coach Michele Garr was in a humorous mood after the win, knowing that Manchester made the end interesting.
“A little too interesting,” Garr said. “We had a lack of concentration. Mentally, we just checked out for a few minutes. I told them they need to stop trying to give me a heart attack"
Snep got the complete-game win for Whitko, striking out five and walking none while scattering seven hits.
In her senior season, Snep is getting a lot of help from her friends behind her, and is less reliant on a high-strikeout game to be successful.
“We’re trying to get her to move the ball around (the strike zone) a little bit more and let her defense help her, which will help us in the (postseason),” Garr said.
Next up for both teams is a tournament Saturday at Tippecanoe Valley.
