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Greencastle softball wins home opener
Big hits all around, including a home run early, helped the Greencastle girls' softball team take a 4-1 win over Sullivan on Saturday in its home opener.
Of course it wasn't just big hits that got the job done on an infield that was at best thick and at worst downright slushy. Defense played a major role in securing the win as the Lady Tiger Cubs committed no errors on the match.
The day started off great for GHS when the first two pitches accounted for two runs in the bottom of the first.
Junior Kenlee Johnson knocked a pitch out of the park to score senior Courtney Adams and make the score 2-0 early.
"When I get in the box I don't think about anything, I just clear my mind," Johnson said. "The pitch was high and I saw it. I just tried my hardest to hit and it went out."
The big first inning was followed by some defense by each team. The field was still wet from last week's rain and the ball tended to settle early rather than roll through gaps.
"We didn't want to harp on it too much," GHS coach Dave Keller said. "I didn't want to get in their heads. We got out here early and when the girls got out here, my thought was 'You guys are going to get used to this because you have to play in it.' It also helped work the field in because nothing's better than a field that has been played on."
Even though Sullivan was able to get runners on base using a variety of methods, Greencastle appeared to handle the pressure and got out of innings with minimal damage done by Sullivan.
Sophomore pitcher Skyler Hensley recorded three strikeouts, with three walks and just three hits. Her varied pitches allowed for the Tiger Cub defense to make good plays, including a double play in which they threw out a runner who had failed to tag-up properly.
Sophomore Grace Paul even chased down a well-placed Sullivan bunt to keep the runner off first base.
"Defense was solid," Keller said. "It was just solid. Skyler (Hensley) pitched out of some jams. The defense made a really nice play in centerfield to double off that runner. That was a big play. I've got a couple girls that haven't played a lot of outfield. But they know that's their role and they stepped up."
The Tiger Cubs continued their good fortune at the plate after two scoreless innings. With two outs junior Paige Bragg hit a deep one for a double and sophomore Gracie Foster drove her home from second on a single.
"The field conditions were a little sloppy today but we've played on worse," Bragg said. "It was just good to get out there because we didn't think we'd have a game today. So we made it work."
With the score 3-0 Sullivan scored its first run in the fifth but Greencastle's defense didn't let another runner cross the plate. Meanwhile, Johnson again smacked one to the outfield and this time Regan Keller followed with a single to score the runner from second base.
"Our defense is very solid this year," Bragg said. "That is something we are going to rely on a lot, because obviously we need hits to stay in the game but the defense needs to stay solid all around."
GHS next plays North Putnam, which is coming off a big doubleheader win against Eminence Saturday.
At Greencastle
Sullivan 000 010 0 130
Greencastle 200 110 x 490
HR-Johnson
Doubles- Johnson, Bragg, Adams
Wp-Hensley 1-0
3 k's, 3 walks, 3 hits
LP-Cox
GHS-
Johnson 2-3 2 RBI, 2 rs
Foster- 2-3 RBI
Keller 1-3 RBI
Adams 1-3 rs
Paul 1-3
Mundy 1-3
Bragg 1-3 rs.