– Photo courtesy of the Central Bulldogs
The Central Bulldogs Varsity softball team secured another victory on the field after facing off against the Carroll Cougars last night amidst rainy weather.
The game day kicked off with community members binding together to push water off the field to ensure the game could begin, including Mr. Hughes, Mr. Ottinger, Mr. Touloukian, Mr. and Mrs. Stowers and Ms. Smith. As the game acted as senior night, the Bulldogs strove to keep the game live, securing a victory of the Cougars with a final score of 11 to 2.
The top of the first saw the Bulldogs gain two errors that allowed for the Cougars to score two runs, which were the final two runs that the Cougars scored throughout the game. Heading into the bottom of the first inning, the Bulldogs kept their bats alive with Landree Whiteman leading off with a base-hit bunt followed by Kortney Surber singling to centerfield, which moved Whiteman to second.
Carly Davison was next at the plate, where she was hit by a pitch, loading the bases. Emily Long stepped to the plate, slamming a line-drive toward the fence, missing a grand slam by two feet from the top of the fence, driving in two runs while ending on second. Olivia Richie took to a the plate, placing a base-hit bunt on the ground that scored Davison, bringing the score to 3 to 2 with multiple outs available for the Bulldogs. As Abigail Richie took to the plate, Long was positioned to score, which was successful with a sacrifice hit from Richie. As the bottom of the first inning concluded, the Bulldogs led with a score of 4 to 2.
Over the next six innings, the Bulldogs defense only faced 24 batters, which was six more batters than the minimum to end the innings, holding the Cougars to their two runs throughout the entire game. The Cougars were positioned for a quasi-comeback in the top of the seventh inning with bases loaded, but the Bulldogs held strong and stopped any runs from scoring.
The Bulldogs had only one inning where the lacked a score, securing one run in the second, two in the third, one in the fourth and three in the sixth, only raking in a donut in the fifth inning. The Bulldogs concluded the game after holding the Cougars in the top of the seventh inning, racking up 12 hits and three errors throughout the game compared to the Cougars’ five hits and two errors, ending the game with a score of 11 to 2.
Bulldogs Seniors Kortney Surber, Landree Whiteman and Sara Parkison were honored during the senior night for their great careers and the lifelong memories that they have acquired and been a part of with their team. The seniors currently have a record of 56 wins and 36 losses, and securing victory against the Cougars guarantees that the seniors will end their careers with at least an even record, and one more victory will guarantee four consecutive winning seasons.
Against the Cougars, Surber went 3-4 at the plate with two doubles and an RBI, Parkison went 2-4 at the plate with a double and Whiteman went 2-4 at the plate. Whiteman secured seven innings pitched and eight strikeouts while only allowing five hits, two runs, three walks and one error during the senior night.