For the second time this season, the McCracken County Lady Mustangs and Livingston Central Lady Cardinals met on the softball field. With the Lady Cardinals getting the best of their first meeting at Marshall County, 5-0 just over a month ago, the Lady Mustangs looked to get their revenge, defeating the Second Region powerhouse, 10-3 Thursday night for the second meeting.
“The first time we played them we couldn’t touch it, but we worked hard and the girls walked up to the plate with a different attitude and we got the bat on the ball hard,” McCracken County head coach Tony Hayden said. “She (Addison Tramble) probably hasn’t been hit off of that hard in a long time.”
The Lady Mustangs connected on 12 hits, for 10 runs on the night, improving from their first meeting where they connected on just two at-bats. Macy Butler, Cami Cox, Savannah McDowell, Addley Leidecker and KG Walker all tallied two hits apiece with Ellie Shoulders and Raygan Rodgers adding the final two.
Walker and McDowell added three RBI each, Walkers came on a double to deep center to score the first two runs and McDowell’s came on a triple to right to claim a 6-3 lead in the bottom of the fifth.
Livingston Central started out hot, loading the bases with a pair of singles and a hit-by-pitch. But, with the talents of AK Hawes in the circle, she would close out the inning with a strikeout to leave the bases loaded.
The Lady Mustangs answered back with two runs in their portion of the first thanks to the double from Walker to score Shoulders and Rodgers. Those two runs would be all the game would see until the top of the fifth.
The Lady Cardinals would tie the game after a pair of walks for Aubrey Leahy and Victoria Joiner put runners out there. Hadley Hargrove would bring her teammates home on a line drive single to deep center to even the game out.
A bases loaded walk for Addalyn King would score the third run courtesy of Hargrove to take the 3-2 lead.
McCracken answered back with a four-run inning in the bottom of the fifth with McDowell’s triple adding to a Rodgers sac fly to a 6-3 lead. Another four runs in the bottom of the sixth would do the trick for the home team.
A line drive single from Butler turned error, led to a great opportunity to score for herself and Cox and the 8-3 lead. Another double from Walker made it a 9-3 lead and a double from Leidecker to left field sealed the deal.
Hawes started the first 4.1 innings in the circle for the Lady Mustangs, allowing five hits, three runs, walked four and struck out six. Leidecker came in for relief and the win, with 2.2 innings, allowing two hits, walked one and struck out one.
“Our pitchers did exactly what we needed them to do,” Hayden said.
The Lady Mustangs will look to close out the regular season with a pair of games at Lyon County on Saturday weather pending. They will potentially take on Lyon County and Owensboro Catholic before they prepare for the Second District Tournament next week.
MCCRACKEN COUNTY 10, LIVINGSTON CENTRAL 3
LCHS 0 0 0 0 3 0 0 — 3-7-1
MCHS 2 0 0 0 4 4 X — 10-12-0
2B: MC — K. Walker 2, A. Leidecker; LC — V. Joiner
3B: MC — S. McDowell
TB: MC — K. Walker 4, S. McDowell 4, A. Leidecker 3, C. Cox 2, M. Butler 2, E. Shoulders 1, R. Rodgers 1; LC — E. Ramage 3, V. Joiner 3, E. Campanella 1, H. Hargrove 1
HBP: MC — A. Leidecker; LC — E. Campanella
SB: MC — C. Cox, E. Shoulders; V. Joiner
RECORDS: McCracken County (25-6); Livingston Central (29-4)