Big first inning drops Patriots

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If not for the first inning, the Patriots could have won easily.

If they had one more out, or perhaps an extra frame, they could have won the hard way.

After giving up nine runs in the first inning to the visiting Blackford Bruins, the Jay County High School softball team got the potential game-tying run in scoring position but a pop out in foul territory put an end to the rally in a 12-11 defeat on Monday.

“I was really proud with the way they did not hang their heads,” said JCHS coach Amy Hawbaker, whose team was in a 9-0 hole before even picking up the bats. “They came back and they fought hard the whole game.

“We just unfortunately ran out of innings. I think if we played an eight-inning game we would have had them.”

Trailing Blackford (1-0) by a score of 11-1 heading into the home half of the fourth inning, sophomore Kensey Litton deposited a 1-0 offering from Alex Whittig over the fence in left field for a two-run homer, the first of her career.

“She shocked herself,” Hawbaker said of Litton, the Patriots’ leadoff hitter known mostly for her bunting and speed. “She’s been working hard hitting both ways. She’s been working hard on slapping. I told her she’s not just a bunter.”

Jay County (0-1) tacked on two more runs in the fifth and sixth innings. Chloe Trissel followed Litton’s lead by rifling a two-run home run of her own in the sixth to make it 11-7 in favor of the Bruins.

“Chloe does a great job too,” Hawbaker said. Trissel and Litton each had two hits, while Gwen Butcher and Katie Carpenter also notched multi-hit games. “I love having them back-to-back. Their speed, they get on base and I know we can get them around.”

Blackford got a bit of cushion in the top of the seventh as Erin Cagle drew a one-out walk, eventually coming around to score for a 12-7 advantage.

JCHS sophomore Sam Twigg began the bottom of the seventh with a walk, Carpenter followed with an infield single and Catera Gierhart and Hannah Phillips each drew walks from Whittig. A wild pitch and error plated two more runs before Butcher ripped an RBI single to push Emily Corn to second base as the potential game-tying run.

But Patriot junior Kady Finnerty popped out to Makayla Harrold in foul territory near first base to end the game.

“Credit to them, they didn’t give up and they came back,” said first-year Blackford coach Dick Lyon.

Butcher struggled to throw strikes early on as she began the game with 14 straight pitches outside of the zone. In the top of the first inning, Blackford drew six consecutive walks, which led to four runs. Jay County nearly got out of the inning in a 4-0 hole, but an error on a potential inning-ending groundout let the Bruins score five more times.

“It took Gwen a while to get adjusted to (the umpire’s) strike zone, which hurt us,” Hawbaker said. “Then we had a huge mental error at second base. That mistake really hurt us.”

It was a start Lyon said he wasn’t expecting.

“That is not the way we wanted to start the game,” he said. “I don’t like scoring a bunch of runs on a bunch of walks just for the principle. It is what it is.”

Butcher went the distance, giving up eight hits and allowing five earned runs. She walked eight and struck out four.

At times, Whittig dazzled in the circle, notching 10 strikeouts through four innings. She finished with 13 punchouts while allowing 11 runs — nine earned — on 11 hits and seven walks.

“(She) missed some spots but she pitched really well,” Lyon said. “Credit her, she didn’t get down and just give up at the end.”

Harrold had a double and two singles for Blackford. Cagle chipped in with two singles and drove in two runs.