The Lowry High School softball team took a step up in competition this past weekend with the same result from the first two weeks of Northern 3A action.
The Lady Bucks made their home debut this past weekend against rival Elko and swept the Indians in a three-game series by a 41-4 margin. Lowry beat Elko 10-0 on Friday and claimed two wins on Saturday 16-1 and 15-3 to improve to 9-0 in the Northern 3A and 11-3 overall.
“We stepped up and played well this weekend,” said LHS coach Ty Lucas. “Any win is a good one and we were able to get three this weekend. It was nice to finally get on our home field.”
Lowry shuts out Elko
Lowry picked up a strong pitching performance from sophomore Macey Katzenmeyer, who allowed just three hits in five innings in the shutout victory. Katzenmeyer threw just 62 pitches, as she struck out three and walked one.
The Lady Bucks picked up all the offense it needed with a pair of runs in the bottom of the first inning. Alyssa Kuskie led off the frame with a single and scored on a single by Kyllie Sappington. With two outs, Alanna Miller singled home Sappington to make the score 2-0.
Lowry broke the game open in the bottom of the second inning with five runs, including a three-RBI double by Sappington that scored Bailey Sapien, Kuskie and Kelcey Cooper. Miller also added a two-RBI double in the frame to extend the advantage to 7-0.
Sappington finished off her 3-for-3 day with a solo home run in the fourth inning. The junior had a team-high four RBI. The Lady Bucks ended the contest in the fifth inning on the 10-run mercy rule on a RBI-single by Cooper that scored Sylvie Prokasky.
Lowry had 11 hits in the game, with Kuskie, Sydney Connors and Miller picking up two hits apiece. Miller added three RBI.
“We are hitting the ball well,” Lucas said. “We are trying to limit the time it takes to adjust to the different speeds of pitchers. They threw three different girls against us and we did a fairly good job of making quick adjustments to them.”
Lowry crushes Elko
Lowry scored multiple runs in each of the four innings, as the game ended in the fourth inning as part of the NIAA 15-run mercy rule.
The Lady Bucks took advantage of five Elko walks and a hit batter to score four times in the bottom of the first inning. Connors provided the first offensive spark of the day, with a three-RBI double that scored Kuskie, Cooper and Sappington. Connors reached base all four times in Saturday’s first game and was 2-for-2 with seven RBI and four runs scored.
Elko trimmed the deficit to 4-1 in the second inning on a double and sac bunt, but it was all Lowry after that. The Lady Bucks added six runs in the second inning on just one hit. The Indians walked five more batters and Madi McClellan had the only hit. Elko walked 13 batters in the game.
Tiana Herrera added a RBI-single in the third inning and Connors connected on a three-run home run in the fourth inning to give the Lady Bucks a 15-1 lead. After back-to-back singles by Miller and McClellan, Sapien ended the game with a double to centerfield.
Prokasky had one her best outings of the year in the circle, a she allowed one run on three hits. She struck out three and walked none.
McClellan and Herrera added two hits apiece for the Lady Bucks. Sappington, Miller, Sapien and Prokasky had one hit each. Despite no having a hit, Cooper scored three runs and had three RBI.
“We are very balanced in the lineup with a mixture of speed and can play small ball if needed,” Lucas said. “We have power mixed throughout and girls that can just keep the inning going. It is nice to have those different elements.”
Lowry finishes off sweep
Lowry found itself trailing for the first time in nine league games, as Elko put together three hits and scored twice in the first inning to lead 2-0.
The Lady Bucks answered back with seven runs in the second inning, starting with RBI-singles from McClellan and Herrera. Lowry pushed the advantage to 5-2 later in the second inning on a three-RBI double by Sappington. Connors and Miller ended the frame with back-to-back singles that scored two additional runs.
Lowry extended the lead to 11-3 in the third inning, with four more runs after a double by Sapien and a triple by Kuskie. Sappington and Connors also had back-to-back doubles to account for the final run of the frame.
Lowry finished off the sweep with four more runs in the fourth inning on the strength of a three-RBI double by Kuskie.
Sappington was 4-for-4 in the game with four RBI. Kuskie added two hits and five RBI, while Connors and McClellan each had two hits.
Katzenmeyer earned the win in four innings of work. She allowed three runs (two earned) on six hits. She walked two and struck out one. Prokasky pitched the final inning, getting a double play to end the contest.
“Our defense has done a good job of supporting our pitchers,” added the coach. “Our pitchers have done a good job all year, and Sylvie was able to come in and finish it for us. We are just looking to keep getting better and work on the little things.”
Lowry is back on the road this weekend at Dayton starting with a single game on Friday at 3 p.m. The two teams play a doubleheader on Saturday at 11 a.m.
