Senior pitcher Brooke Hamilton shined in Owensboro Catholic’s district opener on Wednesday, helping the Lady Aces stay undefeated to start the season with a 7-1 win while handing Apollo its third straight loss to start the season.
The E-gals got the first real scoring threat of the game in the bottom of the first, as a walk for sophomore Macey Calhoun and a wild pitch had runners in scoring position and two down. Brooke Hamilton managed to strike out eighth grader Lily Logsdon though, quickly slowing momentum for Apollo and heading into the second tied at 0-0.
Brooke Hamilton got some momentum off the strikeout, starting the second inning off with a double that caromed off the wall in right center. A fly out followed, but after taking third on a ball in the dirt junior Ruth Jones put the Lady Aces on the board with a sac fly to right.
A tough hop led to an infield single the following at-bat, before sophomore Gracie Dukate delivered a single to center to help Owensboro Catholic take a 2-0 lead into the bottom half of the inning. It wasn’t until the bottom of the third that Apollo was able to cross the plate, as freshman Arianna Ramirez singled back up the middle to cut the lead to 2-1 heading into the fourth.
But the E-gals went on to come to a halt offensively throughout the rest of the contest, as they found themselves leaving runners on base time and time again. This is something that Apollo has struggled with early on this season, which Head Coach Stephen Julian spoke about after the game.
“We just didn’t execute when we had runners in scoring position,” Julian said. “We had runners in scoring position almost every inning and never got them off of second base. You only score one run, you’re not going to win a whole lot of ball games.”
It was Brooke Hamilton’s resiliency that led to those stunted rallies, as she was able to work herself out of a number of jams—something Head Coach Jeremy Phelps has come to expect from the senior. She went on to pitch the entire game, allowing one run on seven hits and four walks while striking out 12.
“That’s what she does,” Phelps said. “That’s what she’s done the last three years… It’s nice when you can count on her if a bad play happens, or you hit someone and put somebody on base or give up a hit. They’ve got a good hitting team over there too. We’ve faced them so many times too so we know everything about rivals cross town… The moment is never too big for her. That’s what I like about her.”
She got it done at the plate as well, ending a near five-minute at-bat into a no-doubt home run to center to take a 3-1 lead into the sixth. Owensboro Catholic went on to get two more runs in the top of the sixth and seventh as well, closing things out at 7-1 and giving them their first district win of the season.
Gracie Dukate’s 1-4 day and two RBIs led the way at the plate, while junior Maci Merritt and Brooke Hamilton both went 3-4 with an RBI each and Abbie Dukate and Jones delivered a pair of hits and an RBI each. The Lady Aces have scored at least seven runs in all four of their wins to start the season, something Phelps credits their experience and depth to.
“We hit the ball really well,” Phelps said. “I think it’s their approach at the plate that’s been a lot better, but we’ve got a lot of experience coming back too. Eight seniors and seven of these girls started last year too. Having that experience and being in there and kind of knowing what to expect, the moment is not too big for them. I do like that and it’s been somebody different every night [that delivers].”
Owensboro Catholic is well aware of its strong start to the season, but knows that they have a tough schedule to close out March and even heading into spring break. The 3rd Region All-A Classic follows the spring break tournament for the Lady Aces, as defending their title is something that Phelps said has been a short-term motivator that has fueled hard work in practice for the team.
“We still know that short-term goal,” Phelps said. “We talk about the goals. Every team’s got goals. Every team is in the weight room, every team is practicing everyday, everybody’s doing the little things. But at what level are you doing them? What your commitment level is [is important].”
But first Owensboro Catholic will have to play its fifth straight road contest, taking on Butler County on Friday at 5:30 p.m. Apollo on the other hand falls to 0-3 to start the season with the loss, having struggled to produce runs once again on Wednesday.
Having scored one, two and one in the first three games to start the season, Julian said that while they have faced tough opponents he just wants to see his team put things together at the plate to help them start earning wins.
“We just gotta score runs,” Julian said. “We just haven’t scored runs at all this year. We’ve seen three good teams with Henderson County, Hancock County and Catholic, but even then you gotta score to win. We just haven’t scored that many runs yet.”
Apollo did get solid performances from freshman Taylor Clark and eighth grader Mollie Julian on Wednesday though, as the two allowed three runs on a combined seven hits while striking out four and allowing no walks in a big test for the underclassmen.
“Mollie’s an eighth grader and Taylor’s a freshman,” Julian said. “We’re like ‘we’re going to throw you guys out there tonight. Welcome to the big leagues.’ I thought they both did phenomenal jobs, so I am very proud of them there. Going into the sixth inning 3-1, you couldn’t ask for much better with those two. Great experience for them.”
The E-gals will look to learn from the district opener and regroup before Friday, as they look to grab their first win of the season in a road matchup with Union County at 6:30 p.m.
