WINNEMUCCA - It is hard to ignore the numbers that the Lowry High School junior varsity softball team is putting up this season.
The scores this year have resembled video game numbers and that continued in the last eight games, where the Lady Bucks outscored their opponents 140-18 to improve to 14-0 on the year. For the season Lowry has outscored teams 229-32.
Lowry began the stretch of games with a 7-3 win over Pershing County's varsity team in Lovelock on March 20.
Lowry was back on the road that weekend in Fallon for three crossover games, opening with a 26-1 victory over host Churchill County on March 23. The Lady Bucks continued their winning ways by defeating Fernley 12-6 and Dayton 19-4 on March 24.
Lowry made its home debut on March 29 and swept a doubleheader from Carlin 26-0 and 27-0. The Lady Bucks closed out the stretch of games on Saturday at Yerington and swept a doubleheader from the Lions, winning game one 16-6 and the nightcap 14-1.
"We are just hitting the ball well right now and for the most part I really have nothing to complain about," said LHS head coach Katy Schwartz. "We are just working on tuning up the game a little bit, getting better every day and finishing the season strong."
In the win over Pershing County, Lowry used all three of its pitchers in the circle. Alyssa Dendary got the win after pitching the final three innings, where she allowed one run on two hits, with two strikeouts and a walk. Kylee McClellan, who pitched the third and fourth innings, helped herself earlier in the game with a two-RBI double in the top of the third that scored Allison Barron and Megan Lombardi to give Lowry a 2-1 advantage.
The Mustangs used single runs in the third and fifth innings to reclaim the lead at 3-2, but the Lady Bucks put up five runs in the sixth inning to earn the win. Taylor Schwartz and Jaecee Munger opened the frame with a triple and double, respectively, and later scored. Dendary then was hit by a pitch and McKenzie Moore reached base on a third strike when the Pershing County catcher dropped the ball. Barron added the final blow with a double to score both players.
Lowry started its crossover series with a 25-run win over Churchill County, which included a 12 spot in the first inning that saw 18 Lady Buckaroo batters come to the plate. Schwartz had two singles in the first inning, as Lowry was aided by five walks, four hit by pitches and four errors. Lexie Coleman, Dendary and Schwartz each scored two runs in the opening inning.
The Lady Bucks put up five runs in the second inning and closed out the game with eight runs in the fourth. Schwartz earned the win for Lowry as she allowed two hits and one run in her four innings of work. She struck out two and walked two.
Lowry's closest matchup in the eight games was against Fernley, who grabbed a 1-0 lead after an inning of play. The rare deficit for the Lady Bucks did not last long, as they posted seven runs in the second inning, started by a single by Dendary. Jorden Raynor added another single, and after two errors by the Vaqueros, McClellan, Schwartz and Jaecee Munger all followed with hits, including a double by Munger.
The Lady Bucks added four insurance runs, two each in the sixth and seventh innings, to build the lead, and Schwartz closed out the Vaqueros in order in the seventh. McClellan started for Lowry and earned the win after five innings of work.
In the crossover finale against Dayton, McClellan, Coleman and Schwartz started off the game with singles and Munger finished off the four-run inning with a home run. Munger added another home run as part of a five-run second inning, as did McClellan. The Lady Bucks posted four runs in the third inning and six in the fourth to further break the game open.
Dendary struck out nine batters on her way to the win, allowing four runs and four hits.
After playing its first 10 games of the season on the road, Lowry saw its home field for the first time on March 29, when Carlin made the trip to Winnemucca. With a number of players out this season for the Railroaders, they brought their junior varsity team as well.
Schwartz dominated Carlin from the circle in the first game of the doubleheader, giving up just two hits in five innings of work, with seven strikeouts and two walks.
Lowry scored six runs in the bottom of the first on just two hits, as Carlin hit three batters and committed two errors. The Lady Bucks got the offense going in the second, scoring 16 runs, as 21 batters went to the plate. Schwartz had a home run in the inning, while Raynor and Dendary each picked up two hits. Coleman and Raynor each had six RBIs in the game.
In the nightcap, McClellan needed just 50 pitches to throw a perfect game. The freshman struck out nine of the 15 batters she faced, including all three Carlin batters in the top of the fifth. McClellan also picked up five hits in the game and had six RBIs.
"Our pitchers have come along well and they are looking to gain confidence in their pitches," said the coach. "They are gaining speed and doing the little things coach (Dana) Peters is asking them to do. It's great to have Dana working with them."
Lowry scored twice in the first inning, which was all the offense they needed. But the Lady Bucks' offense continued to pound the ball with 18 runs and 14 hits in the second inning, where Lowry sent 23 batters to the plate. McClellan had three hits in the big inning, with Alyssa Jones, Barron and Coleman each adding two hits.
Lowry was back on the road this past Saturday at Yerington. The Lions gave the Lady Bucks a fight for a short time in game one but nor for long. Each squad scored single runs in the first inning. After scoring a single run in the second, Lowry tallied four additional runs in the third, including a two-RBI double by Coleman that scored Munger and Dendary. Barron and McClellan each contributed RBI doubles to give Lowry a 6-1 lead.
Yerington answered back with three runs in the bottom of the third to close the gap to two runs, but Lowry countered with five runs in the sixth inning to put the game out of reach. The Lady Bucks pounded out 21 hits, including four each from Dendary and Schwartz and three apiece from McClellan and Munger. McClellan, Schwartz, Munger and Coleman each had two RBIs. Schwartz earned the win, allowing six runs on four hits with six walks and three strikeouts.
The nightcap was not as close, as McClellan and Dendary combined for a two-hitter. McClellan picked up the win with four strikeouts and two walks.
Munger and Coleman each had run-scoring base hits in the opening inning. The offense continued into the second, with Tanisha May, Raynor, Schwartz, Munger, Coleman and Lombardi all collecting hits that scored runs. Lowry added six runs in the final three innings for the final outcome.
"The girls play hard and I like to see that," Schwartz said. "They tend to get off topic sometimes, but they are having fun and that is part of it too."
The Lady Bucks return home Saturday to host Elko in a doubleheader starting at 11 a.m.
"What I am looking for is improvement instead of coasting, which can happen when you play games like we have," Schwartz said. "We had a meeting with the girls and told them they need to set goals for themselves and not coast and find things to improve on and go from there. I am looking forward to playing Elko."
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