Louisville Splits with Mustangs in (HR) Derby Twin Bill – Softball
On the same day as the annual Kentucky Derby held in Louisville, Kentucky, the Lady Leopards Varsity Softball Team hosted the Lady Mustangs of Claymont for what turned out to be a (home run) derby of their own in Louisville, Ohio. The two teams treated the base paths like a race track as they combined for 9 home runs, 37 runs, and 55 hits in their double header split Saturday at West Main Vet Clinic Field.
Claymont defeated Louisville in game one 11-5 before the Lady Leopards earned a 12-9 victory in game two. Louisville now sits at an even 10-10 on the season heading into this weekend’s tournament draw.
Game 1: Claymont 11, Louisville 5
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Senior centerfielder Kaylee Nolte batted 2-for-4, scored a pair of runs, and hit a 2-run homer over the left field fence that tied the game at 2-2 in the first inning.
Five different Lady Leopards recorded multi-hit games led by junior designated hitter Jenna Collins who finished 3-for-4 at the dish. Freshman shortstop Matti Benson, junior left fielder Katie Porter, and senior first baseman Lauren Stillwagon all tallied 2 hits each for Louisville as well.
Mustangs Slug 5 Home Runs
The Lady Mustangs slugged 5 home runs in response en rout to building an 11-3 advantage in the top of the seventh. Senior centerfielder Jordan Gibson and sophomore left fielder Gracee Hudnall smashed 2 homers each, and senior first baseman Hannah Snyder hit the final home run.
Gibson put Claymont in front 3-2 on a solo homer to left field in the third inning. Hudnall later extended the Mustang advantage with a 2-out, 2-run homer to left field in the fifth to up the margin to 5-2.
Gibson and Hudnall would hit back-to-back home runs on four pitches to begin Claymont’s 4-run seventh inning. After senior catcher Brooklyn Poland walked, Snyder cracked a 2-run homer over the center field fence to put the Mustangs in front 11-3 with no one out in the seventh.
Leopards Fight to the End
The Lady Leopards didn’t surrender game one without a fight in the last of the seventh. Collins singled home Benson to cut the deficit to 11-4. Then Porter hit a 2-out double to left field that scored Nolte from third. That would be as close as LHS would get as they would fall 11-5.
Louisville’s only other run came in the bottom of the sixth. Sophomore second baseman Shelby Mayle reached base via an infield error which allowed fellow sophomore Kendra Thomas to score from third to cut the deficit to 7-3.
Each Team Records 11 Hits
Hits were an even 11-11 for the game. Gibson pounded out 3 while also scoring 3 runs for the Mustangs. Sophomore right fielder MaKena Brown also finished 2-for-4 and scored on an error to open the scoring for the game. Poland followed in the opening frame with a single to plate Gibson from third that put CHS in front 2-0.
This was the first ever meeting between the two schools in varsity softball.
Game 2: Louisville 12, Claymont 9
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The Lady Leopards pounded out 20 hits en rout to victory in game two. Junior designated hitter Jenna Collins finished a perfect 4-for-4 at the plate with 3 RBIs. Senior first baseman Lauren Stillwagon went 4-for-5 at the dish with a double and scored 2 runs. Senior centerfielder Kaylee Nolte also finished 3-for-5 with a pair of doubles, 3 RBIs, and 4 runs scored for Louisville.
The entire Leopard lineup recorded hits during the game. Freshman shortstop Matti Benson, junior second baseman Shelby Mayle, and junior left fielder Katie Porter all tallied 2 hits each. Benson, junior catcher Brooke Brendle, and Porter all drove in 2 runs each as well.
In the circle, sophomore starting pitcher Kendra Thomas went the distance in earning her second victory of the season
Benson Ties Freshman Record with 6th Homer
Benson hit the Lady Leopards only home run of the game on a solo shot with 1-out in the bottom of the sixth that upped the LHS lead to 11-9. The homer was Benson’s sixth of the season tying her with Louisville alum Katie Cozy (2012-2015) for the team freshman record.
The Lady Leopards have now blasted 15 home runs this season. More importantly, the homer provided some insurance for Louisville after they had watched their 10-4 advantage shrink to 10-9.
Poland Drives in 7 Runs for Claymont
Senior catcher Brooklyn Poland was the reason that the Leopard lead shrunk so quickly. Trailing 10-5 with 2 outs in the top of the sixth, Poland hit a grand slam to center field to bring the Mustangs within a single run. The homer was her second of the game and the seventh on the day for Claymont as a team.
Poland would finish with 7 runs batted in for the game. Her sacrifice fly brought home senior centerfielder Jordan Gibson to break the ice in the opening inning. Poland then chopped into the Louisville lead with a 2-run homer to left field in the third that got the Lady Mustangs within 7-4.
Claymont finished with 13 hits as a team. Sophomore right fielder MaKena Brown finished 3-for-5 with an RBI double in the fourth inning that cut the Leopard lead in half at 10-5. Senior first baseman Hannah Snyder went 2-for-4 with an RBI single in the opening inning. Junior third baseman Lexi Greer and sophomore left fielder Gracee Hudnall also recorded multi-hit games and combined for 5 of the Mustangs 10 runs.
UP NEXT: The Louisville Leopards Softball Team will next host the New Philadelphia Quakers on Monday, May 3 at 5:00 PM.
VARSITY SOFTBALL BOX SCORE GAME 1
MUSTANGS 11, LEOPARDS 5
Team 123-456-7–R-H-E
201-022-4—11-11-2
200-001-2—5-11-3
CLAYMONT MUSTANGS SOFTBALL VARSITY BATTING STATS
Lineup | AB | R | H | RBI | BB | SO |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
MaKena Brown | 4 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Jordan Gibson | 4 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
Gracee Hudnall | 4 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 0 |
Brooklyn Poland | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
Hannah Snyder | 4 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
Savanna Morris | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Nadia Alleshouse | 4 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
Lani Abbuhl | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
Lexi Greer | 4 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
Meadow Duvall | – | – | – | – | – | – |
Totals | 34 | 11 | 11 | 10 | 2 | 3 |
CLAYMONT MUSTANGS SOFTBALL VARSITY PITCHING STATS
Pitching | IP | #P | S% | H | R | ER | SO | BB | HR |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Meadow Duvall | 7.0 | 90 | .622 | 11 | 5 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
Totals | 7.0 | 90 | .622 | 11 | 5 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
LOUISVILLE LEOPARDS SOFTBALL VARSITY BATTING STATS
Lineup | AB | R | H | RBI | BB | SO |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Matti Benson | 3 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
Kaylee Nolte | 4 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
Lauren Stillwagon | 4 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
-Kendra Thomas | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Jenna Collins | 4 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
Kenzi Denzer | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
Katie Porter | 4 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
Shelby Mayle | 4 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
Kat Frase | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
-Brooke Brendle | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Brooke Haren | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Cloie Ensley | – | – | – | – | – | – |
Totals | 33 | 5 | 11 | 5 | 1 | 1 |
LOUISVILLE LEOPARDS SOFTBALL VARSITY PITCHING STATS
Pitching | IP | #P | S% | H | R | ER | SO | BB | HR |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Cloie Ensley | 7.0 | 90 | .622 | 11 | 11 | 11 | 3 | 2 | 5 |
Totals | 7.0 | 90 | .622 | 11 | 11 | 11 | 3 | 2 | 5 |
Records: Louisville 9-10
VARSITY SOFTBALL BOX SCORE GAME 2
LEOPARDS 12, MUSTANGS 9
Team 123-456-7–R-H-E
Claymont 202-104-0–9-13-1
Louisville 253-002-X–12-20-1
CLAYMONT MUSTANGS SOFTBALL VARSITY BATTING STATS
Lineup | AB | R | H | RBI | BB | SO |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
MaKena Brown | 5 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
Jordan Gibson | 4 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Gracee Hudnall | 3 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Brooklyn Poland | 3 | 2 | 2 | 7 | 0 | 0 |
Hannah Snyder | 4 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
Savanna Morris | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
Nadia Alleshouse | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
Lani Abbuhl | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
Lexi Greer | 4 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Meadow Duvall | – | – | – | – | – | – |
Haley Fellows | – | – | – | – | – | – |
Totals | 33 | 9 | 13 | 9 | 2 | 1 |
CLAYMONT MUSTANGS SOFTBALL VARSITY PITCHING STATS
Pitching | IP | #P | S% | H | R | ER | SO | BB | HR |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Haley Fellows | 1.2 | 35 | .657 | 9 | 7 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Meadow Duvall | 4.1 | 65 | .600 | 11 | 5 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
Totals | 6.0 | 100 | .620 | 20 | 12 | 10 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
LOUISVILLE LEOPARDS SOFTBALL VARSITY BATTING STATS
Lineup | AB | R | H | RBI | BB | SO |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Matti Benson | 3 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
Kaylee Nolte | 5 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 |
Lauren Stillwagon | 5 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Jenna Collins | 4 | 1 | 4 | 3 | 0 | 0 |
Katie Porter | 5 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
Brooke Brendle | 4 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
Shelby Mayle | 3 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
Kendra Thomas | 4 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
Kenzi Denzer | 3 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Brooke Haren | – | – | – | – | – | – |
Totals | 36 | 12 | 20 | 12 | 1 | 1 |
LOUISVILLE LEOPARDS SOFTBALL VARSITY PITCHING STATS
Pitching | IP | #P | S% | H | R | ER | SO | BB | HR |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Kendra Thomas | 7.0 | 95 | .611 | 13 | 9 | 9 | 1 | 2 | 2 |
Totals | 7.0 | 95 | .611 | 13 | 9 | 9 | 1 | 2 | 2 |
Records: Louisville 10-10