The Lady Cougars are off to a strong start to their season, winning both of their opening games. Games were held at Mineral Area College (MAC) as part of the Midwest Clash Softball Weekend, which SCC co-hosted with MAC.
Game 1 vs Lewis & Clark Trailblazers
The Lady SCC Cougars defeated Lewis and Clark Trailblazers 9-1 in game one.
The Cougars got on the board in the top of the first inning after Zoey Robinson doubled to center field, Ella Lause singled down the left field line, and Emily Budd singled down the left field line, each scoring one run.
The Cougars added to their early lead at the top of the second inning after Hannah Cantrell singled down the right field line, allowing Nevaeh Carter to run in. Lorelei Johnson earned a walk, leading Cantrell to score.
Cougars added one run in the third after Emily Parsons singled to center field.
Three more Cougars runs crossed the plate in the fifth inning to extend the lead to 9-1. Parsons hit a sacrifice fly, scoring one run, and Maddy Seifert homered to center field, scoring two runs.
Ayla Smith pitched in game one for the Cougars, allowed one hit and one run (zero earned) over four and two-thirds innings, striking out four and walking one.
Cougars accumulated 16 hits in the game. Carter, Budd, Robinson, Lause, and Cantrell each collected multiple hits for the Cougars. Seifert collected three hits in three at bats. Seifert hit a home run to center field in the fifth inning, singled in the second inning, and singled in the third inning.
Game 2 vs Hawkeye RedTails
The Cougars hold off the Hawkeye Redtails' charge for an 8-7 victory to end the day.
Hawkeye RedTails opened the scoring in the first after hitting a home run to left field, scoring three runs. In the bottom of the first, the Cougars pushed back. After several hits, SCC earned two runs from walks with bases loaded.
The Cougars flipped the game on its head in the bottom of the second, scoring five runs on four hits to take the lead, 7-3. The biggest blow in the inning was a double by Lause that drove in two.
The Cougars scored another run in the bottom of the fourth on a solo home run to center field by Alayna Johnson following a 7-pitch at-bat.
Bryten Kendrick pitched the first five innings in game two for the Cougars. The righty allowed seven hits and seven runs (five earned) over five innings, striking out 12 and walking four. Maci Knowles closed, pitching the last two innings, striking out five and walking one.
Next up, the women will head to Frontier Community College on February 25th.