Louisville Falls to Manchester in 17-16 Hit-Fest – Softball
Manchester 17, Louisville 16
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The Louisville Leopards Varsity Softball Team fell to the Manchester Panthers 17-16 Friday Evening in their opening game of the Duhon Tournament held at Arthur Genshaft Memorial Park in Massillon. With the loss, the Lady Leopards drop to an even 6-6 on the year.
Ten Different Louisville Batters Record Hits
Louisville pounded out 23 hits as a team led by junior third baseman Jenna Collins and senior first baseman Lauren Stillwagon who each went 4-for-5 at the plate. Freshman shortstop Matti Benson and junior catcher Kat Frase both went 3-for-5 at the plate for the Lady Leopards and combined for 5 RBIs. Freshman third baseman Kenzi Denzer, freshman right fielder Brooke Haren, and junior left fielder Katie Porter also recorded multi-hit games for LHS.
Ten different Louisville batters recorded hits, nine different LHS players scored runs, and everyone in the entire Lady Leopards starting lineup drove in at least one run each. Colins, Frase, and Haren crossed the plate three times for Louisville.
Leopards Pounce on Panthers With 7 Run 1st
The Leopards pounced on the Panthers with 7 runs in the opening inning as they batted around the lineup bringing 11 to the plate. Benson set the tone early by starting the game off with a double to left field. She then stole third and scored on an error to break the ice. Sophomore second baseman Shelby Mayle also advanced to third base via the error to set the table for the second LHS run. Senior centerfielder Kaylee Nolte and Collins both followed with RBI singles to make it 3-0 in favor of Louisville before an out was registered.
After an out, Frase singled home Collins and Haren doubled in Stillwagon to put the Leopards in front 5-0. Two batters later, Benson delivered a 2-run single scoring Frase and Haren to put Louisville ahead by the football score of 7-0.
Manchester Uses Long Ball to Rally
Despite a significant early advantage, the Lady Leopards found themselves trailing the Panthers by the end of the second inning as Manchester scored 9 of the next 10 runs. Stillwagon doubled home junior Brooke Brendle for the lone Louisville run during the rally in the top of the second.
The Panthers smashed three homers during their initial comeback. Designated hitter Grace Bowe hit a 3-run homer to cut the deficit to 7-4 in the first inning. Catcher Maggie Kusmits hit a solo homer to get Manchester within 8-5 in the bottom of the second. Then third baseman Chloe Perry cleared the bases with a 2-out grand slam to put the Panthers ahead 9-8 in the second inning.
Louisville Takes Commanding 16-10 Lead
After an abnormal scoreless third inning, the see-saw affair continued with the Leopards scoring 8 of the next 9 runs. This gave them a 16-10 lead by the middle of the fifth inning.
Porter singled in Collins to knot the game at 9-9 at the start of the fourth inning. However, Louisville’s bid to take the lead back appeared to stall after their bases loaded threat was vanquished via a rare 1-2-5- ground ball double play.
The Lady Leopards still managed to rip off four more runs with two outs in the top of the fourth to take a 13-9 advantage. Denzer singled in Frase and Benson singled home Haren. Denzer then stole home via a double steal that put Benson at second base. Mayle followed with a single to center that plated Benson.
Louisville picked up right where they left off to begin the fifth inning as the first three Lady Leopards singled aboard to load the bases. Frase drove in Collins to put LHS ahead 14-10. Frase and Haren would later score via Panther errors to give the Leopards a commanding 16-10 lead.
Panthers Score Final 7 Runs Unanswered
Manchester answered with four runs in the bottom of the fifth to cut their disadvantage to 16-14 and added another run in the sixth to get within a single run.
At the same time, Louisville’s bats went silent as Panthers pitcher Audrey Bergrum-Chainey retired the Leopards in order in the sixth inning. She then held Louisville off the board in the seventh inning as LHS stranded runners on second and third to end the frame.
With 1 out in the last of the seventh, left fielder Corinne Hite doubled home Perry to tie the game at 16-16. Then right fielder Naomi Morehart reached base via an error scoring second baseman Abby White from third allowing Manchester to walk-off with the victory.
The Panthers improved to 7-5 after tallying 19 hits during the victory. Kusmits led Manchester by going 4-for-5 with a homer, a double, 3 RBIs, and 3 runs scored. Perry went 3-for-5 with a homer, 5 RBIs, and 2 runs scored and Bowe finished 2-for-4 with a homer, 4 RBIs, and 2 runs scored. Hite also recorded 3 hits and shortstop Tess Christy drove in a pair of runs and scored 3 runs to round out the MHS highlights.
Louisville Vs. Manchester Softball Series
Louisville is now 2-3 against Manchester all-time with all five meetings being played on a neutral field. The Lady Leopards defeated the Lady Panthers in each of the last two seasons at the George Duhon Memorial Tournament prior to Friday’s matchup. Manchester also defeated Louisville in 2008 at Massillon and in 2009 at Strikeout Cancer held at Lake.
<<< Previous 2019 | Manchester All-Time Series
Third Highest Combine Score in Team History
The 16 runs ties the most the Lady Leopards have scored in a losing effort in program history. Louisville matched the mark of the inaugural 1985 team who lost to Canton Timken 21-16 in what is still the highest scoring game in team history.
The two teams combined for 33 runs and 42 hits during the game. The combined 33 runs scored is tied for the third most in LHS team history with the 1987 team. Louisville defeated visiting West Branch 17-16 on April 22, 1987. Earlier that year, the Lady Leopards also defeated the Warriors in Beloit 22-12 on April 15, 1987 in the second highest scoring game in team history.
Below is a look at the top 11 highest scoring games in Louisville Leopards Softball history:
| Total Runs | Date | Opponent | W-L | Louisville | Opponent | |
| 37 | 1985 | Canton Timken | L | 16 | 21 | |
| 34 | 4/15/1987 | at West Branch | W | 22 | 12 | |
| 33 | 4/16/2021 | Vs. Manchester | L | 16 | 17 | |
| 33 | 4/22/1987 | West Branch | W | 17 | 16 | |
| 30 | 4/25/1991 | at Minerva | W | 25 | 5 | 6 Inn. |
| 29 | 4/29/2011 | Archbishop Hoban | W | 26 | 3 | 5 Inn. |
| 29 | 4/1/1998 | Canton Timken | W | 29 | 0 | 5 Inn. |
| 29 | 1989 | Alliance | W | 24 | 5 | |
| 29 | 4/23/1988 | St. Thomas Aquinas | W | 15 | 14 | |
| 28 | 5/15/2013 | Vs. Green | W | 25 | 3 | 5 Inn. |
| 28 | 4/12/2005 | Carrollton | W | 17 | 11 |
UP NEXT: The Louisville Leopards Softball Team will next challenge the Lake Blue Streaks in their second game of the Duhon Tournament on Saturday, April 17. Game time is set for 10:00 AM from Arthur Genshaft Memorial Park.
VARSITY SOFTBALL BOX SCORE
PANTHERS 17, LEOPARDS 16
Team 123-456-7–R-H-E
Louisville 710-530-0–16-23-4
Manchester 450-141-2–17-19-3
LOUISVILLE LEOPARDS SOFTBALL VARSITY BATTING STATS
| Lineup | AB | R | H | RBI | BB | SO |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Matti Benson | 5 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 |
| Shelby Mayle | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| Kaylee Nolte | 4 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| -Brooke Brendle | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Jenna Collins | 5 | 3 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Lauren Stillwagon | 5 | 1 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Katie Porter | 5 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Kat Frase | 5 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| Brooke Haren | 5 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Kenzi Denzer | 5 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Cloie Ensley | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| Kendra Thomas | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| Totals | 43 | 16 | 23 | 12 | 1 | 2 |
LOUISVILLE LEOPARDS SOFTBALL VARSITY PITCHING STATS
| Pitching | IP | #P | S% | H | R | ER | SO | BB | HR |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kendra Thomas | 1.1 | 50 | .620 | 5 | 6 | 6 | 2 | 2 | 2 |
| Cloie Ensley | 5.0 | 100 | .680 | 14 | 11 | 6 | 2 | 1 | 1 |
| Totals | 6.1 | 150 | .660 | 19 | 17 | 11 | 4 | 3 | 3 |
MANCHESTER PANTHERS SOFTBALL VARSITY BATTING STATS
| Lineup | AB | R | H | RBI | BB | SO |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Maggie Kusmits | 5 | 3 | 4 | 3 | 0 | 0 |
| Emma Stamperd | 4 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Tess Christy | 5 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| Audrey Bergrum-Chainey | 4 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Grace Bowe | 4 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 1 | 1 |
| Chloe Perry | 5 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 0 | 0 |
| Abby White | 5 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Corinne Hite | 5 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 |
| Naomi Morehart | 5 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Hannah Hobbs | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| Yasmin Lucas | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| Courtney Evans | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| Totals | 42 | 17 | 19 | 16 | 3 | 4 |
MANCHESTER PANTHERS SOFTBALL VARSITY PITCHING STATS
| Pitching | IP | #P | S% | H | R | ER | SO | BB | HR |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Audrey Bergrum-Chainey | 7.0 | 104 | .663 | 23 | 16 | 10 | 2 | 1 | 0 |
| Totals | 7.0 | 104 | .663 | 23 | 16 | 10 | 2 | 1 | 0 |
Records: Manchester 7-5, Louisville 6-6
