Lady Maroons shut out Jumpers on the road

Apr. 25—For the second time in as many days, Pulaski and Somerset squared off on the softball diamond, with the Lady Maroons looking for a perfect 6-0 district record and the Lady Jumpers looking to snap a four-game skid. The Jumpers once again struggled to manage any hits on their home field and after scoring five runs in the third innings, Pulaski cruised to the series sweep 6-0.

It was a quick top of the first inning, as Somerset starting pitcher Addy White sat down three batters in a row, despite Claire Hamilton getting the first hit of the game off a single, to retire the side. Brooklyn Thomas struck out her first batter in the bottom of the frame, before two singles in a row by Jazlynn Shadoan and Mollie Lucas put the home team in prime scoring position with just one out. Another strikeout plus a fly out brought an end to that scoring chance however.

Two straight outs opened up the second, as Addy White was pitching really well to begin the contest. A Rilee Ross single got the Maroons going again on offense before a strikeout sat the Maroons down. Thomas made quick work of Somerset in the bottom of the inning, striking out two of the three batters she faced.

Novaleigh Baker singled to third to begin the third, before another strikeout from White brought the beginning of the batting order for Pulaski back up. It didn't take long for them to capitalize either, as Thomas drilled the first pitch she seen to center field for a two-run home run, giving Pulaski a 2-0 lead. A long shot to right field from Hamilton gave her a triple and put Pulaski right back into scoring position.

A single from Bella Ellis brought home another run and set up Ryann Sowder to come in for her at-bat. Sowder, like Thomas before her, didn't waste any time and blasted the first pitch she seen out of the park, as she too had a two-run home run. The bleeding stopped there for Somerset, as the next two batters grounded out to end the top of the frame, although Pulaski now had built a 5-0 lead for themselves.

Aleah Wesley was walked in the bottom of the third, although Thomas calmed down and was able to sit down the next three batters to bring a close to the inning, including adding another strikeout to her total.

White sat down the first two batters in the top of the fourth, including one via strikeout, before two straight singles from Avery Davis and Thomas. A ground out ended any hopes of Pulaski adding to their lead however. Thomas flexed her pitching skills in the bottom of the fourth, striking out all three batters she faced on 13 pitches.

Neither team could do much of anything in the fifth inning, with both sides being retired in order. Thomas was throwing absolute heat late though, as she struck out all three batters once again for six consecutive strikeouts.

After a fly out to start the sixth, Maggie Gregory and Baker were both able to single to center to give Pulaski two base runners. A strikeout followed before Thomas, who had done a ton of damage at the plate so far, was intentionally walked to load up the bases. White was able to get out of the jam though, as the next batter grounded out to Lucas at third.

Thomas began the bottom of the sixth with her seventh-straight strikeout, before Sarah White was walked to bring an end to that streak. Thomas threw yet another strikeout for the second out of the half-inning, before a fly out to second baseman Kynslie Crabtree retired the side.

Ellis doubled on a line drive to right in the top of the seventh inning, before two straight outs put Pulaski down to their final out with a runner on third. A pop fly by Ross was dropped by an infielder for a single, increasing Pulaski's lead to 6-0 heading into the bottom of the last frame.

Once again, it was stellar pitching and defense from the Maroons to close out the game, as Thomas sat down the final three batters, including getting one last strikeout on the last batter, to close out the game and give themselves a perfect 6-0 record in district play with a 6-0 win over Somerset.

Thomas and Sowder led the way with two RBI's and one home run apiece for the Maroons, with Ellis and Ross each adding one RBI. Thomas was dominant on the mound in the win, allowing just two hits with two walks and 14 strikeouts.

Pulaski clinches the number one seed in the district tournament and improves to 16-5. They will face Garrard County on the road on Thursday before returning home on Friday to take on Wayne County.

Shadoan and Lucas had the lone hits for the Jumpers, with Shadoan also adding a stolen base. Addy White had the loss on the mound, going the full seven innings while allowing six runs on 13 hits with one walk and five strikeouts.

Somerset falls to 8-13 and will next compete in the All "A" Classic on Saturday.

Jacob Pratt is the Sports Editor of the Commonwealth Journal and can be reached at jpratt@somerset-kentucky.com.