Apr. 20—Chloe Linn led the way as Western's softball team beat Logansport 13-3 in six innings on Friday in pool play at the Ben Davis Classic.
The Class 3A No. 11-ranked Panthers bashed the Berries for 14 hits. Linn went 3 for 3 with a home run, a double and two RBI. Kylie Miller went 2 for 4 with a solo homer and a double.
Also for the Panthers, Sienna Stone smacked a triple and a double, Kamryn Garber doubled and singled, Lucy George had two singles and Brynley Erb and Lexi Dollens each had a double. Stone, Garber and George drove in three runs apiece.
Linn also excelled in the pitching circle. The Panther senior tossed a complete game, allowing eight hits and three runs. She struck out six and walked two.
"Good night all around," Western coach Bart Miller said. "It was good to see the bats going again. We did have a lull in the third and fourth innings — we went 1-2-3 back to back, credit Logan's pitching on that — but the girls made the adjustments again and came back strong toward the end of the game."
Bart Miller liked what he saw from his defense as well.
"The outfield made some outstanding plays on balls in the air," he said. "I'm really proud overall of the defense."
Western (8-0) plays three more games today. The Panthers have pool games against Bishop Chatard (9 a.m.) and Ben Davis (11 a.m.). From there, the Panthers will have a final game to determine place.
Logansport dropped to 8-2.
KOKOMO 11, RILEY 4
Kokomo rocked South Bend Riley for 16 hits and the Kats beat the Wildcats 11-4 in the Kokomo Tournament's opening round.
Lanayah Buckner led the Kats' hitting party by going 3 for 4 with a grand slam. Dani Tate was 3 for 5.
Kokomo plays Bellmont in a semifinal game at 10 a.m. today. The winner will advance to the 4 p.m. championship. The loser will play in the third-place game, which is also at 4 p.m.
EASTERN 17, ELWOOD 2, 5 INNINGS
Emillia Andrews hit two home runs and drove in five runs to lead Eastern's rout of Elwood in a clash of Sectional 39 teams at Elwood.
Kenzie DeGraaff and Marly Coan also homered for the Comets, who had 15 hits.
Lilli Shrock pitched all five innings for the win. She allowed three hits and two runs (one earned), struck out two and walked four.
"Overall, the team is really coming together and finding their groove in this new season. I'm really proud of them for continuing to learn and develop as a solid unit," Eastern coach Carly Shively said.
BASEBALL
KOKOMO 4, CASS 3
Brighton Harris singled to score David Conner with the go-ahead run in the bottom of the sixth inning and the Kats went on to beat the Kings. Conner ignited the rally by hitting a double.
Conner and Harris both finished 2 for 3. Isaac Flamino went 1 for 2 with two stolen bases and an RBI. Ethan Merrell was 1 for 2 with a stolen base and an RBI.
Harris earned the win after holding Cass scoreless over the sixth and seventh innings. Eli Catron (three innings), Drew Williams (two innings) and Harris combined on a one-hitter.
Kokomo improved to 6-2.
WESTERN 10, TAYLOR 3
Levi Shoemaker pitched five sharp innings to lead the Panthers past the Titans at George Phares Field.
Shoemaker allowed two hits and one unearned run. He struck out seven and walked three. Tate Heston pitched the final two innings.
"Shoemaker gave us a good start on the mound and allowed us to take the lead early, then add to it to take control," Western coach Ryan Berryman said.
The Panthers (8-0) led 3-1 after the first inning, 6-1 after three, 7-1 after four and 10-1 after six.
The Panthers had 11 hits. James Paden went 2 for 3 with a double and two RBI, Shoemaker was 2 for 4 with a double, Miles Rudy was 2 for 3 with two stolen bases, Jason Dickison was 2 for 3 with an RBI and Cal Berryman and Ethan Chapin each had a double. Cal Berryman drove in a run.
"Taylor's pitchers did a good job of competing and inducing us into 11 flyball outs. We caught some barrels and moved the ball, but we got long with runners on base and had some untimely strikeouts," Ryan Berryman said.
Western plays at Lawrence Central today.
MAC 8, BLACKFORD 3
Kaleb Shelton and Bennett Isenburg had three hits apiece and Jacob Isley had two doubles in Maconaquah's road win.
Adam Cannon started and earned the win and Deven Mitchell worked in relief. The Braves improved to 2-4.
"The key to our victory [Friday] was that we limited the number of free bases for the other team. Adam and Deven both threw a lot of strikes. Adam pitched to contact to get a of ground balls. The defense made all of the routine plays. We looked settled and relaxed on defense," Mac coach Eric Isenburg said.
GIRLS TENNIS
EASTERN 3, NW 2
Kenzie Eagle and Emma Budde took over in the third set to win their doubles point and clinch the team match for Eastern (4-2) over visiting Northwestern.
Eagle and Budde won the No. 2 doubles match 4-6, 7-5, 6-1. Eastern's No. 1 doubles team of Julia Salkie and Reagan Princell won 6-4, 6-1, and No. 3 singles player Morgan Kaiser won 6-2, 6-4.
"Good match. It's always nice to get a win over a county and sectional rival, and that was an exciting match that could have gone either way," Eastern coach Pat Rice said. "Match came to No. 2 doubles, and we were able to grab the momentum there in the third set, getting out to a nice lead. Morgan Kaiser continues to play well for us at 3 singles, getting another straight-set win."
Northwestern's Anna Grube won the No. 1 singles match 6-1, 6-2, and Berkley Wray won the No. 2 match 6-1, 6-0.
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