WINNEMUCCA - With a young team out in the field this year, the Lowry High School varsity softball team is learning that there is more to the game than just the physical aspect of the game.
That was evident on Tuesday afternoon as the Lady Bucks traveled to Reno to face Bishop Manogue of the Division I North. Lowry held a 3-1 lead after an inning and a half of play, only to see the Miners score the final 12 runs and win 13-3 in five innings.
"It should have been a lot closer than it was," said LHS head coach Ty Lucas. "We had them panicked and they pulled out their pitcher. We are too complacent with our leads and are having a hard time competing when someone else has a lead. As a young team we need to get better at mental toughness. That is on me and my coaches; we need to do a better job of that. The ability is there and the girls have proven they can play. The mental competitiveness is what we need to work. Even though this score doesn't show it, we have been in every game this year except one."
Lowry jumped in front 1-0 in the top of the first inning when Ere Higbee doubled with one out. She later scored on a double by Carli Evatz. Bishop Manogue tied the game at 1-1 in the bottom of the first on the strength of a leadoff single and two walks.
The Lady Bucks reclaimed the advantage at 3-1 in the top of the second as Alyssa Dendary led off the frame with a single. The sophomore scored on a double by Taylor Schwartz, who later plated a second run in the inning on a wild pitch.
The offense slowed for Lowry, who had just two hits in the final three innings of play. The Lady Bucks had a rally going in the fourth inning, but left two runners on base.
Bishop Manogue countered with five runs in the bottom of the second to lead 6-3 and did not trail again. The Miners tacked on two runs in the third and four more in the fourth inning to stretch the advantage to 12-3. Bishop Manogue put together three consecutive hits in the fifth inning to end the game on the 10-run rule.
"We have to learn to keep a team down when we have the chance to," Lucas said. "I have a lot of belief in this group of girls. It is a learning experience right now."
Schwartz led Lowry with two hits and Shelby McKinnon, Higbee, Evatz and Dendary each had one hit. Jordan Mecham started in the circle and suffered the loss in three innings of work. She allowed 11 runs (nine earned) on 12 hits. She walked two and struck out one. Schwartz threw the final two innings. She gave up two runs (one earned) on four hits.
This past weekend Lowry traveled to Elko to begin play in the Division I-A North against schools from the Lahontan League. The Lady Bucks opened with a crushing 19-0 win over Dayton on Friday, March 22. After a couple years of frustrating losses to Churchill County, including the state championship a year ago, the Lady Bucks knocked off the Greenwave 4-2 on Saturday morning. Lowry could not keep the momentum going, losing 8-1 to Fernley to close out the weekend.
"You see us have glimpses of good play," Lucas said. "We came out from the start against Dayton and dominated them. We had a pretty good battle against Churchill County and that is what the girls can do. Then we come out against Fernley and just go through the motions."
In the victory over Dayton, Lowry raced out to a 4-0 lead in the bottom of the first inning on the strength of a two-RBI single by Evatz. Evatz came around to score after stealing third base and a throwing error by the Dayton catcher.
The Lady Bucks tacked on two more runs in the second inning and put the game out of reach with eight runs in the third. Kylee McClellan began the rally with a walk and Schwartz and McKinnon closed out the frame with run-scoring singles.
Lowry finished out the scoring in the fourth inning, behind a triple and double by Schwartz and Dendary in consecutive at bats. McKinnon then reached on an error by the Dust Devils' second baseman and Higbee followed with a RBI single. Jaecee Munger was hit for a third time in the game and she later scored after Lexie Coleman reach base on an error.
McKinnon, Higbee, Evatz and Schwartz each had two hits. Jordan Mecham earned the complete game one-hitter as she struck out seven and walked none. The Dust Devils picked up their hit in the first inning and the Lady Bucks retired the next 14 batters.
Lowry (5-8 overall, 2-1 Division I-A North, 1-2 Ruby Mountain) used a solo home run by Higbee in the bottom of the first inning to lead 1-0 and never trailed. The Lady Bucks increased the advantage to 4-0 in the second inning behind three consecutive RBI doubles by Dendary, McKinnon and Higbee.
Meanwhile, Mecham retired the first nine Churchill County batters for the Lady Bucks. The Greenwave picked up base hits in the fourth and fifth innings, before breaking on to the scoreboard in the top of the sixth inning. Mecham completed the game for Lowry in the circle and allowed four hits, while giving up two runs. The senior struck out seven and walked one.
"We have let them off the hook in a number of games over the last three years," added the coach. "They have been the monkey on our back. It was important in terms of getting a win in league play and setting us up for a good spot in the playoffs."
In the weekend finale, Fernley plated a single run in the first inning and two more in the fourth to pull out to a 3-0 lead. Lowry broke on to the scoreboard in the fourth inning on a RBI single by Coleman that scored McClellan.
That was all the offense for the Lady Bucks, who had just two base runners in the final three innings. The Vaqueros busted the game open with five runs in the fifth inning.
Mecham started and suffered the loss in 4.1 innings of work. She allowed eight runs (four earned) on eight hits. She struck out three and walked none. Schwartz threw the final 2.2 innings and struck out three of the eight batters she faced.
"We come off an emotional win and 30 minutes later we can get the intensity back up," Lucas said. "You can't assume it will happen, you have to go out and do it. It was a prime example of us not being mentally and emotionally ready to play."
Lowry travels to Sparks this weekend for three games against schools from the Mount Rose League. The Lady Bucks play South Tahoe today at 1 p.m. and Sparks and Truckee on Saturday at noon and 3 p.n., respectively.
"It is another important weekend for us," Lucas said. "Every game counts and it starts with South Tahoe. We need to come out focused and ready to play and are not going to take anybody lightly."
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