Katherine Hibbitt hit a two-run homer to dead center for a pair of insurance runs in the sixth inning, and the Trinity softball team picked up their first win Friday with a 16-12 home victory over Breckinridge County. The Raiders baseball team got a complete game on the mound from Owen Payne, who led them to a 5-3 win over Dawson Springs at home.
SOFTBALL
The Lady Raiders (1-10) got rolling quickly and posted the most runs in any game of the season. Despite being outhit 12-11, head coach Jack Melton said Trinity had one of their best defensive outings and looked good on both sides of the ball.
“Our schedule was heavy at the beginning, and I knew that going in.” he said. “We’ve been struggling on offense and defense, but it kind of all came together today. They stuck together. We hit the ball well and played pretty good defense.”
McKenzie Roberts scored in the first inning for a quick lead, but the Lady Tigers (3-3) plated four in the second to go in front. Trinity responded with their biggest inning offensively, scoring six runs in the bottom of the frame.
Nina Wathen got things started with a leadoff single, and the first four batters — Wathen, Avery Barnett, Abby Payne and Josie Aull — all scored. Roberts and Cassidy Morris also added runs.
Breckinridge County scored six of their own in the fourth, but Trinity immediately answered with three more runs to tie the game at 10. Another four in the fifth frame pushed the Lady Raiders in front for good, and Hibbitt’s bomb in the next inning created some breathing room to close out the win.
Hibbitt pitched the first four innings, striking out three and walking five. Allie Barnett finished out the game, walking two and striking out the final two batters. Leading the offense were Hibbitt (2 hits, 2 runs, 4 RBIs), Roberts (2 hits, 3 runs, 2 RBIs), Brittney Booker (2 hits, 3 runs), Wathen (2 hits, 2 runs) and Morris (3 runs).
BCHS 040-602-0—12-12-6
THS 160-342-x—16-11-2
WP: Al. Barnett. 2B: Peterson 2 (BC). HR: Hibbitt (T).
BASEBALL
Payne struck out 14 batters over seven innings, giving up six hits and no walks to steer Trinity (2-5) to victory. Unable to get much going early, they eventually collected nine hits and used a three-run fifth frame to take the lead for good.
“Owen threw a heck of a game,” said head coach Chris Chaffin. “We were a little slow on the bats starting out, but we put it together there at the end to push some runs across.”
The Raiders went on top with a run in the first inning, but Dawson Springs (0-6) plated two in the second. Trinity then tied it with a score in the bottom of the inning.
Gavin Howard led off the fifth inning with a triple and went on to score the go-ahead run. Landon Huff (2 hits, run, RBI) and Kevin Foster (2 hits, 2 runs, 2 RBIs) also crossed the plate, and the Panthers were unable to mount any real threat the rest of the way.
Chaffin was glad to finally maintain a lead, as they’ve lost three games by one run.
“Losing those games by one makes you know one play here or one hit there could push that momentum the other way,” he said.
Now, as they head to Florida for a spring break tournament, Chaffin is hoping the Raiders will continue to improve. They’ll play teams from down south that are well into their seasons, so Chaffin said staying mentally tough will be key.
“We’re trying to work on what we can improve on, work on what we do and not worry about who we’re playing against,” he said. “If we got down there and hit the ball and make some good defensive plays, we’ll be ok.”
DSHS 020-000-0—2-6-3
THS 110-030—5-9-1
WP: Payne. LP: Guill. 2B: Payne (T). 3B: Howard (T).
