PORT CLINTON – On a chilly day, it took a little time for the Ross softball team’s bats to get warmed up.
But when the Lady Giants finally caught fire Wednesday, it took even longer for Port Clinton to put them out.
Kaylee Dodson
Ross blew open a tight game with a 6-run sixth inning and followed it up with five more in the top of the seventh to cruise to a 14-6 win over Port Clinton.
The win is Ross’ first of the season and evens its overall record to 1-1. More importantly, it allows the Lady Giants to enjoy a long break between games without the cloud of being winless hanging over them.
“I’m glad we got our first win today because we have a long layoff through the holiday,” coach Tony Hill said. “We lose this game, it could fester over the holiday and become something bigger than it needed to be. We have six days off without a game and now we go into that on a high note.”
Ross’ offense looked strong in the early going. The Lady Giants opened the game with a lead-off double by Kayla Rich. She came home when No. 2 hitter Braelyn Horn drove her in with a base hit to right field.
Later in the inning sophomore Kaylee Dodson sent her first career varsity home run over the fence in left-center to put Ross ahead 2-0 after the top half of the first inning.
“I’ve been struggling hitting recently, so I was just trying to focus on getting my hands through the ball and really working on keeping my head in and have good contact with the ball,” Dodson said. “I knew it was a good hit but I didn’t think it was gone. I didn’t know it was gone until I was rounding second. It was nice.”
Dodson wasn’t finished. She laced a base hit to centerfield in the fifth to drive home Gabby Zuniga and increase the lead to 3-0. Dodson finished the day 4-for-4 at the plate with a walk and a pair of RBIs.
“She didn’t play with a whole ton of confidence last year, she was the only freshman on varsity so she kind of had a target on her back,” Hill said of Dodson. “This year, she is more of a quiet leader. The kids look to her because she is super-solid defensively. We always knew she had a little power and we’ve expected this. When the ball went out it was exciting because it was her first, but at the same time it wasn’t surprising.”
Port Clinton got a run back in the bottom of the fifth, but the Lady Giants didn’t allow their opponents to stay close for long.
Gabby Zuniga
Morgan Englund and Rich hit back-to-back RBI-triples in the top of the sixth followed by a home run by Zuniga, her second round-tripper in as many games, for a 7-1 lead.
Dodson followed with another base hit and scored on an RBI-double by Paige Risch. Risch later scored on an error to increase the lead to 9-1.
Port Clinton made a pitching change before the top of the seventh but it did nothing to stop the bleeding. Taking advantage of four walks in the inning and numerous wild pitches and passed balls, Ross added four more runs, including RBI base hits by Zuniga and Mekayla Logan.
“It did take us a while to time her up, which is not good,” Zuniga said of Port Clinton’s pitching. “We should have been hitting her in the first and second and it took us until about the fifth. She was a slower pitcher, it was arching in there. And she was fast-pitching every pitch so you didn’t have much time to set up, so it was a struggle, but that’s something we have to adjust to.”
While Ross’ offense blew open the game late, the Lady Giant defense ensured Port Clinton stayed off the scoreboard in the early going. The Lady Giants showed poise and calm in the field. Ross’ only miscues came on back-to-back errors in the second inning, allowing Port Clinton runners on second and third, but Englund picked a great time for her only strikeout of the day, getting a swing and a miss with a well-timed off-speed pitch, getting the batter to swing well ahead of the ball.
Englund had a nice day, pitching all seven innings allowing just two walks and nine hits – five of which came in the bottom of the seventh, when Port Clinton scored five of their six runs.
Morgan Englund
“Some of it was we subbed Morgan out and she sat on the bench and got cold because it took a little bit of time for us to score those runs,” Hill said. “That’s something, as coaches, we have to address. If we pull her, we have to have her throw during the game to keep her loose.
“These are the games we expect Morgan to have, she’s not going to strike out 100 kids this year,” Hill added. “Playing to her strengths, she’s going to get groundballs and we’re going to play defense behind her. …She can be really effective if we give her defense.”
The Lady Giants return to action Tuesday at Fostoria.
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| Name | Grade |
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| Josephine Garner | 09 |
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| Morganne Lozano | 09 |