Freshman Destiney Black pitches for one of her 12 strikeouts in earning the win over Jefferson in her first varsity outing. GINI DAVIS – THE CRESWELL CHRONICLE
Freshman Destiney Black smacked a three-run double in the fifth inning to give Creswell a 6-4 lead over visiting Jefferson, and that stood as the final score as the Lady Dawgs won their preseason softball opener on March 12.
In her first varsity pitching outing, Black gave up four runs – two earned – on eight hits, struck out 12 and walked three in earning the win.
With just three returning starters, first-game jitters got to the Lady Dawgs early. Down 2-4 after two, Creswell closed to 3-4 in the fifth, punctuated by Black’s three RBI-double.
”Experience cannot be overrated. We were extremely nervous; we made some mistakes and Jefferson made us pay,” said Creswell Head Coach Brett Giles. ”I was really proud of our team in not giving up after the first inning and finally figuring out the pitcher in the fifth to get some scoring going.”
Aubrie Hatch went 2-for-3 with a double, two RBIs and two runs; Hallie Drago went 2-for-3 and scored twice; Ehrich was 1-for-3 with an RBI; Morgan Janshen was 1-for-2 and scored; and Amanda O’Reilly scored.
Creswell also downed visiting Oakland 14-9 on March 14, scoring five in the second and six in third for a commanding 11-2 lead. ”We were able to take advantage of some solid hitting, errors and walks,” Giles said.
But in the fifth and sixth Creswell gave up some walks and base hits, and Oakland pulled to within three. ”The lead was slipping away, and we had no momentum, but the girls responded,” Giles said. Izzy Ramirez, O’Reilly and Kelsey Kuhnhausen opened the bottom of the sixth with singles; all scored, and Creswell led 14-8.
Kuhnhausen was 3-for-4 with an RBI and three runs; Black went 3-for-4 with a double and three RBIs; Janshen was 2-for-5 with two RBIs and a run; Hatch was 2-for-5 with a double and an RBI; O’Reilly was 2-for-2 and scored twice; McCrory was 1-for-3 with an RBI and two runs; Drago was 1-for-4 and scored twice; Ehrich was 1-for-3 with an RBI; Ramirez was 1-for-1 and scored; McKenzie Traetow scored twice; and Myckenna Hurst scored.
Black gave up nine runs – six earned – on seven hits, struck out seven and walked eight.
”We struggled a little with our pitching, but Destiney was able to get outs utilizing her defense behind her,” Giles said. ”It was a great team victory.”
