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Nevada softball drops district opener, 11-1
By Eric Wade
Daily Mail Sports Editor
WARRENSBURG -- The Nevada Lady Tigers softball team entered play in the Class 3, District 13 softball tournament Wednesday night, taking on a familiar opponent in the Lady Cardinals of Clinton High School.
The two squads entered the contest knowing that every game from this point on would be a "win or go home" situation and though Clinton entered the tournament as the third seed, while Nevada was seeded sixth, there wasn't really a clear favorite heading into Wednesday's contest. The two squads met once this season sat Clinton and the Lady Cardinals came out on top, but it was a close contest that was decided by one run and included a number of what Holcomb called "questionable" calls by umpires, at the time.
As everyone in attendance knew it could be since the first meeting happened nearly a month ago, Wednesday night's contest was an entirely different matter. The Lady Tigers simply couldn't get much of anything going against the Clinton defense, ultimately resulting in an 11-1 victory for the Lady Cardinals in five innings.
"Definitely not the way we wanted to end it," Holcomb said of the season, that ended much more quickly than she, her players and assistant coach Danny Penn had hoped.
One of the biggest issues the Lady Tigers have battled all season long was slow starts and Wednesday's contest was no exception. Maddie Hedges got the start in the pitching circle for Nevada and she struggled right from the start, giving Clinton a quick opportunity to take hold of the game early on.
The Lady Tigers didn't squander that opportunity as Brooklyn Sisk got her squad on the board with a two-run home run in the top of the first inning. The Lady Cardinals went on to touch Hedges for a total of three runs on three hits in the frame, putting the Lady Tigers in an early 3-0 hole.
It looked as though Hedges might find her groove from that point on as she put the Lady Cardinals down in order in the second inning, but that was ultimately not the case. The Lady Cardinals ultimately picked right back up where they left off in the third, plating two more runs on four hits and bringing an end to Hedges' day in the pitching circle.
Hedges finished the night allowing five runs on six hits with a walk and a wild pitch in 2 1/3 innings to take the loss. Carsten Warner came on for the Lady Tigers and finished out the frame, keeping her squad still within reach, down 5-0.
Things didn't go well for the remainder of Warner's time in the circle, however, as she allowed three runs on one hit with three walks before the first out of the fourth inning was recorded. Once she made her exit and the book could be closed on her night, Alesha Laning became the third Nevada pitcher of the night and went on to allow one more run of her own, giving the Lady Cardinals a 9-0 lead after four innings and seemingly sealing the game.
As they've done throughout the year, however, the Lady Tigers never gave up. Holcomb's squad finally got to Clinton pitcher Chelsea Thornley in the top of the fifth, plating one run on an infield single by Michaela Brewer that brought home Kayler Ast.
That was the only run the Lady Tigers were able to manage, however, taking a 9-1 deficit into the home half of the fifth.
"We knew coming into it, she was a little slower than some of the other pitchers we've faced, but we had to again, kind of like when we were in Clinton before, we started making the adjustment late in the game instead of earlier," Holcomb said. "It's just hard to come back from a deficit like that." Though that one run did make it a bit more difficult for Clinton to earn a run-rule victory, the Lady Cardinals' bats never did let up, leading to to more runs in the home half of the frame, ultimately leading to the 10-run victory.
"Give it to them," Holcomb said. "They hit the ball well." The Lady Tigers finished the night being outhit by Clinton, 10-4, while Clinton also benefited from a total of five Nevada walks. Though Wednesday's loss brought an end to the season, she still left Jennies Field with her head held high, taking solace in the fact that most of this year's squad still has a lot of playing time ahead at the high school level.
"Youth, kids that have a lot of experience on the ball field, maybe not with one another, or in that particular position," Holcomb said in evaluation of the season. "We've just got to keep making adjustments."
With the loss, the Lady Tigers finished the season with an overall record of 8-18, while Clinton moved on to the second round of the tournament. Though the season didn't end on nearly as high a note as anyone involved with the team might have hoped, Holcomb still had nothing but positive things to say to her squad, moving forward.
"Keep working. Believe in one another," she said, when asked what her final message to this year's squad would be. "That's kind of been our focus thus far is to just believe in one another."