It may have taken two rain delays and a postponement, but Apollo softball is returning to the 9th District Champion and 3rd Region Tournament for the first time since 2019.
After an inning and a half, the game between Apollo and Owensboro Catholic was postponed from Monday evening to Tuesday afternoon.
“I thought they came back out, focused, and ready to play,” Apollo Head Coach Stephen Julian said. …It took the bats a little bit to get going. …They came through and got the job done.”
Unfazed by the hindrance, Mollie Julian returned to the circle for Apollo, completing seven shutout innings and driving in a pair of runs to secure the 4-0 win over their rivals.
“We were really prepared for anything to happen,” Mollie Julian said. “We worked hard for this. We really wanted to play and finish last night and get this over with, but I guess it worked out in our favor.”
Julian and the Lady Aces Ava Mudd were locked into a pitching duel early, combining for seven strikeouts before the game was pushed to Tuesday. Resuming play in the bottom of the second, Julian crushed a double into rightfield to score Liza Page.
The E-Gals padded their lead in the third when Tyler Hall singled to score Reice Coomes. Later in the inning, Emersyn Bullington scored on a bases loaded walk and Julian singled to push the lead to 4-0.
Owensboro Catholics’ best scoring opportunity came in the top of the sixth when they loaded the bases with one out. Julian found a way to squirm out of the jam when she got Mudd to pop up and Raegan Leach to fly out.
“I am proud of her for hanging in there,” Stephen Julian said. “Mollie is Mollie. She knows what I expect and just goes up there and gets the job done.”
Julian struck out 10 over seven shutout innings and finished 2-3 with two RBIs at the plate, while Page and Hall both had RBIs.
For the Lady Aces, Mudd struck out six and allowed three earned runs over six innings, while Raegan Leach, Lily Logsdon, Taylor Clark, and Mudd all had hits.
“I thought Ava pitched well. Phelps said. “She did everything we asked her to do, and she worked really hard the last couple of weeks, fine-tuning to hit her spots. She did great.”
With this loss, this marks the first time since 2019 the Lady Aces will miss the 9th District Championship and 3rd Region Tournament. They finished the season 16-14 and are only losing one senior in Clark.
“Clark had a great year out there,” Phelps said. “She transferred over from Apollo two years ago and had to sit out last season. So, her being here, being a great leader for this team, talking to the younger ones, and helping them. Teaching them what it takes to be a team player.”
Now the E-Gals turn their attention to a rematch with Daviess County in the 9th District Championship game, scheduled for this Friday at noon.
“We have to come ready to compete,” Stephen Julian said. “They are a talented team, but we have played a lot of talented teams this year. We have played teams at a high level, and they are at a high level. So you just want to come out and give it your best.”
