WINNEMUCCA - After struggling the week before against Battle Mountain, the Lowry High School varsity softball team was looking to head into the opening round of the Division I-A North Regional Championships this weekend in Winnemucca.
The Lady Bucks (22-10 overall, 11-1 Division I-A North, 12-2 Ruby Mountain League) closed out their three-game series with the Lady Longhorns at home on Tuesday with a 10-0 victory in five innings.
"It was much better from the first time we played them," said LHS head coach Ty Lucas. "We had trouble getting used to the slower pitching. We were not going to press and get out of our game. We were able to manufacture some runs at the start and were able to finish strong. I challenged the girls to finish the game in five innings and they responded."
Lowry has won 17 of its last 19 games and has outscored its opponents 202-39 in that stretch. Of their 10 losses this year, six of those have been to schools in central California. The only Nevada schools to beat Lowry this year were Bishop Manogue, Fernley and White Pine.
The Lady Bucks manufactured the eventual winning run in the bottom of the second inning. Allison Barron was hit by a pitch with one out and Taylor Schwartz walked. Jordan Mecham then reached base on an error at third base. With the bases full, Shelby McKinnon grounded out to second base, but Barron scored on the play to give Lowry a 1-0 advantage.
The Lady Bucks added four runs in the bottom of the third as Ere Higbee and Kylee McClellan reached base on a walk and single, respectively. Dendary followed with a sharply hit ball to third base and on the throw to first base was wild, allowing Higbee and McClellan to score.
Dendary crossed the plate on a suicide squeeze by Taylor Schwartz to make the score 4-0 and McKinnon drove home Barron for the final run of the frame.
Lexie Coleman started a five-run rally in the fifth inning as a dropped fly ball resulted in her reaching second base. Schwartz and Jorden Raynor followed with a walk and single, respectively, to load the bases.
Battle Mountain's fifth error of the day led to Coleman scoring, as the Lady Longhorns' shortstop had trouble with a ground ball off the bat of Carli Evatz. Higbee then reached base on an error at second base to plate Schwartz and Raynor to make the score 8-0.
"We were not going to allow ourselves to not adjust for an entire game," Lucas said. "There was a focus on getting the timing down."
McClellan ended the game with a double between left and centerfield, scoring Evatz and Higbee for the mercy-rule victory.
McClellan led Lowry with three hits and two RBIs, while McKinnon, Higbee and Dendary each had two RBIs.
Mecham was dominant in the circle as she struck out nine and walked none in four innings of work. The senior gave up three hits in her final regular season game as a Lady Buckaroo. Schwartz entered in the fifth and struck out two, while allowing one hit.
"It was a good tune-up for us before we start a new season with the playoff's coming up," added the coach. "It is a brand new season starting Friday."
Lowry stepped out of league play this past weekend and made its second trip to California this year. The Lady Bucks were in Susanville for the Lassen High School Varsity Softball Tournament.
Lowry played three games on Friday, April 26, losing 7-6 to Enterprise (Redding Calif.) in its opening game. The Lady Bucks bounced back to beat Central Valley (Ceres, Calif.) 17-8 and Corning, Calif., 5-3.
Lowry lost 11-1 to Redding, Calif., on Saturday morning, but came back to beat Lassen (Susanville, Calif.) 9-1.
"It was a great time to go to California, get another tournament and get out of here," Lucas said. "It was a good chance to see some different teams and different styles. The fact that we were able to play at an elite level and prove to ourselves we are ready and capable of playing in tough circumstances and tough games."
The Lady Bucks were cruising for three innings against Enterprise, building a 3-0 lead. Lowry took a 1-0 lead in the second inning on a RBI-single by Jaecee Munger that drove home McClellan, who led off the inning with a triple. The Lady Bucks added two runs in the third, the first coming when Mecham scored on an error and the second was on a ground out to the pitcher by Evatz that drove home McKinnon.
After going hitless through the first three innings, the Hornets exploded for seven runs in the fourth inning as they sent 12 batters to the plate. Enterprise took advantage of three Lowry errors and strung together four hits.
Trailing 7-4 in the sixth inning, Lowry rallied for two runs, starting with McKinnon, who was hit by a pitch, and she scored after stealing home. McClellan added a RBI-single to plate Evatz, but the rally fizzled after that.
McClellan paced the Lady Bucks with three hits, while
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McKinnon, Evatz, Higbee, Munger, Raynor and Mecham each had a hit.
Mecham went the distance in the circle and suffered the loss. She allowed seven runs (four earned) on five hits. She struck out four and walked three.
"We had one bad inning and that's all it was," said the coach. "It was mistakes that we had not made in a while. However, I was pleased with how we bounced back. Every team we played was a quality opponent."
After seeing its 13-game win streak snapped, Lowry regrouped with a convincing win over Central Valley. The Lady Bucks scored eight runs in the first inning and cruised from there.
Lowry did the damage in the opening frame on just two hits - a triple by McClellan and a single from Munger. McKinnon, Higbee and Dendary reached base on errors and scored, and Schwartz and Raynor were hit by pitches. Alyssa Jones reached on a fielder's choice and had a RBI on the play and McKinnon came back around to score the eighth run after reaching on a walk.
Central Valley closed the gap to 8-5 in the third inning but did not get any closer. Lowry added single runs in the fourth as a ground out by Evatz scored McKinnon and Munger added a solo homer in the fifth inning.
The Lady Bucks increased the advantage to 12-6 in the sixth inning on a home run by McKinnon and a RBI-double by McClellan to score Higbee.
Lowry put the game out of reach in the seventh inning on the strength of a two-RBI double by Higbee and a two-run home run by McClellan.
Schwartz pitched a complete game for the Lady Bucks as she allowed eight runs (five earned) on six hits. She struck out two and walked two.
McClellan went 4-for-5 in the game with four RBIs and two runs scored. McKinnon, Dendary and Munger had two hits apiece.
Lowry finished its busy day with a two-run victory over Corning. The Lady Bucks broke a scoreless tie in the third inning after a two-RBI single by Higbee. Barron and Evatz reached base in between outs in the frame before scoring on the hit by Higbee.
The Cardinals strung together two hits in the bottom of the third to cut the deficit in half. The Lady Bucks bounced back in the top of the fifth inning, starting a two-out rally on a single by Higbee. McClellan followed by reaching base on a fielder's choice. Dendary gave Lowry a 3-1 lead with her single and Munger capped off the frame with a two-RBI double to make the score 5-1.
Corning added a single run in the fifth and used two doubles to score another in the seventh, but Mecham retired the final two batters to end the game.
Mecham pitched a complete game and allowed three runs on seven hits. She struck out seven and walked one. McKinnon, Higbee and Dendary each had two hits.
After playing three games on the first day of the tournament, Lowry had an early wakeup call on Saturday morning with a 9:45 a.m. start against Red Bluff.
The Spartans jumped on the Lady Bucks quickly, scoring three runs in each of the first two innings. Red Bluff added four runs in the third to put the game out of reach.
Lowry's lone run came in the second as McClellan scored after a sacrifice by Schwartz.
The Lady Bucks used three pitchers, with Dendary taking the loss in the start. The sophomore allowed six runs (five earned) on four hits. She walked four and struck out one. Schwartz entered in the second inning and gave up four runs (three earned) on two hits. The junior walked two and struck out one. Mecham pitched the fourth and gave up a run and hit, while striking out two.
Lowry was right back on the field following the loss, but showed no ill-effects in the win over the host school.
The Lady Bucks scored once in the bottom of the first on a ground out by Higbee that scored McKinnon, who led off the frame with a single.
The Grizzles tied the game in the top of the second inning, but it was all Lowry after that. The Lady Bucks scored six runs in the third inning on the strength of two-RBI base hits by Barron and Schwartz. McClellan also had a RBI single in the frame.
Lowry closed out the game in the fourth behind a RBI-single by Higbee and a RBI-double by Munger. McKinnon and McClellan each had three hits for the Lady Bucks and Barron added two.
Mecham earned the complete-game victory as she allowed one run on three hits. She struck out seven and walked two.
Lowry begins its run to the state tournament today against Dayton. The Lady Bucks host the Dust Devils at noon and 2 p.m. A third game, if needed, will take place Saturday at 1 p.m.
If Lowry wins it will be back at home on Friday, May 10, and Saturday, May 11, for the semifinals and finals of the Division I-A North Regional Championships.
"All we are worried about is the first game on Friday," Lucas said. "We are taking it one game at a time and that is how we are going to do it the rest of the year."
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