The Pershing County High School softball team hosted the West Wendover Wolverines for a doubleheader on Friday afternoon. The Mustangs won both games (16-12, 10-1).
On Saturday, the Mustangs welcomed Smith Valley for a non-league matchup. A thunderstorm ended the first game of the doubleheader after the fifth inning, with Lovelock trailing 14-12. Officials scrapped the second game as thunder cracked and lightning lit up the sky.
Pershing County comes back against West Wendover
The Wolverines jumped out of the gate with two runs. They kept their lead until the Mustangs came alive, running in six runs in the fifth inning. Taylor Garland was on her way to pitch four games in two days while Aledda Sam played catcher. Meanwhile, graduating senior Senicka Happy caught everything that came her way in the outfield.
The win was a team effort with no slackers. Freshmen Madyson Grenz, Garland, Miyah Gallagher, Danya Zepeda, Yasmine McKinney and Anna Happy stepped up quickly in the short 2021 season. They transitioned from middle to high school softball in six weeks, no easy task.
Sophomores Andrea Canchola, Lupita Lopez and Marya Burke were freshmen last year when softball ended, mere weeks into the year. The 2021 season is also their first at the high school level.
The more seasoned players include juniors Bela Rosas, Aledda Sam and Kassandra Swindlehurst. Senicka Happy is the team’s only senior. “We’ll miss her smile in the dugout after she graduates,” says McKinney. About Rosas, the coach adds, “Bela always plays solid defense. I get more impressed with her speed at shortstop every week.”
“I was so proud of my girls,” said Mckinney. “They battled back to win and then played great in the second game. They kept their heads up and did not give up on themselves and each other, which has been our issue this year.”
In the second game, the Wolverines scored their only run in the first inning. The Mustangs were quiet until the third through fifth innings when they crossed the plate ten times to win the game.
Thunder and
lightning send Smith Valley home early
The Mustangs came back the following day to host Smith Valley’s Lady Bulldogs.
The first game of the day was a close battle with neither side willing to let up.
The Mustangs scored six runs in the fifth inning but still trailed by two (14-12). The Bulldogs fought back with eight runs in the fifth. They were set for their at-bat when the storm hit in earnest, causing officials to call it quits.
“I know we would have battled back,” says McKinney. The competitors enjoyed each other’s company. In between games, they formed a circle and vowed to have fun no matter who won.
The Mustangs, McKinney, Drew Wanner and Tony Nelson also celebrated the Bulldog’s only senior, Maycee LaFleur.
“In the second game, we didn’t get a full inning before we had to call it. As soon as that last lightning hit, I knew we were done for the day,” said McKinney.
That’s the end of the regular 2021 softball season for 15 Mustang ballplayers.
However, they’ll compete in the regionals in Lovelock on Saturday, May 22.
