Pitching fuels Trojans to sweep of Smoky Valley

ORIGINALLY WRITTEN DON RATZLAFF
Hillsboro managed only six hits all day, but parlayed them into a 6-1, 5-3 sweep of Smoky Valley Friday at the Sports Complex.

That Trojan ace Holly Lindsay allowed only five hits in 14 innings was a big reason the Trojans raised their season record to 5-3.

In the first game, the Vikings broke a 0-0 deadlock with a run in the top of the third on a Trojan error by Robyn Penner after a single and stolen base.

Hillsboro took the lead with two runs in the fourth on a single by Lindsay, an error on a ball hit by Emily Donahue, a walk to Emily Ratzlaff, a fly out by Julie Wall that scored one run and a two-out single by Amy Duerksen.

The Trojans took control with four runs in the fifth. Penner’s two-RBI double was the big hit. Ratzlaff drove in Penner with a double and Wall followed with a sacrifice bunt to score Donahue, who had reached on an error.

Lindsay, meanwhile, held the Vikings to only two hits and struck out eight over seven innings.

In the nightcap, the Trojans opened a 2-0 lead in the third, but the Vikings came back to tie the game with a pair of runs in their next at bat on a base hit and a couple of Trojan errors.

Hillsboro came back in the bottom of the fourth to score three runs without a base hit-helped by two walks, a hit batter, an error and a wild pitch.

Lindsay gave up a third run on a single and double with two outs in the seventh, but struck out the leadoff hitter to end the game.

“I was happy, obviously, with the sweep,” coach Carolyn Long said. “They are a good team. They were good, close games for us.”

Long said she felt her team was hitting the ball better than they had been, though it didn’t show up in the scorebook as base hits.

“In practice, we went back to basics, breaking our swings way down and working at it step by step,” she said. “We had to. We were really struggling at the plate. Hopefully, we’ll continue to do that and get ourselves on track with hitting.”

The other disappointment were the 10 errors the Trojans committed during the day.

“We had more errors than I would have anticipated we’d have,” Long said. “Right now they’re communication errors. We just have to get better at communicating.”

Haven

Proving again that softball is a game of inches, Haven took advantage of some good fortune to score three runs in the third inning and slip past Hillsboro, 5-1, in the second game of their doubleheader.

The Trojans, behind the three-hit pitching of Holly Lindsay, won the opener, 5-0.

The two teams were 0-0 going into the third inning of the nightcap when Haven managed their big inning. With two outs, Haven’s number nine hitter bunted down the first-base line. Hillsboro’s first baseman, Emily Donahue, fielded the ball just before it might have rolled foul, enabling the batter to each first.

The next two Wildcats blooped singles just over the head of second baseman Shelby Estelle and two runs scored. A third run crossed the plate after a walk and one more single.

Three Trojan errors in the fourth and one in the sixth led to the final two runs for Haven.

Hillsboro scored its only run of the game in the fourth.

Lindsay (2-3) went the distance for Hillsboro, giving up six hits and two walks while striking out seven.

In the first game, though, the Trojan pitcher was even more effective, shutting out the visitors on three hits while striking out eight and walking no one.

Lindsay got all the run support she would need in the fourth when the Trojans pushed across one run. After Donahue walked with one out and Emily Ratzlaff singled, Julie Wall struck out, but Kara Wasemiller singled to drive in Donahue.

Hillsboro added four insurance runs in the sixth with the help of an error and singles by Donahue and Wall to load the bases with two outs. Amy Duerksen then singled to right to drive in one run, and Estelle followed with a double to right center to clear the bases.

Coming-The Trojans were scheduled to play Nickerson on Tuesday. On Friday, Hillsboro will travel to Lyons to play a pair of games that were postponed because of cold weather April 2. Next Tuesday, the Trojans will host Moundridge.

The Lyons and Moundridge games will begin at 4:30 p.m.

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