SOFTBALL

The Forester softball team logged their first sweep of the season, 12-3, 4-1, Tuesday afternoon by downing a Mount Vernon squad that is currently receiving votes and came into the afternoon ranked second in the league standings.

While the hosts managed just one more hit than their guests in the opener, Huntington was able to translate that into runs on the boards at a much higher rate as evidenced by run-ruling the Cougars (19-7, 9-5) in five.

Adelyn Harsh was the key cog to HU’s offense. As the DP, the sophomore slugger sailed one out of the park in the third and did so again in the fourth. Her first mighty swing landed her three RBI while she collected two more with her second swing. Both proved the first two of her Forester career.

Tied at 1-1, the third was HU’s go-ahead inning. Ehler’s crew found home five times. In addition to Harsh’s three-run dinger, Mackenzie Walker and Breanna Hines each hammered out a run-producing single to put HU on top 6-1.

The Cougars’ two run counter in the top of the fourth was more than matched in the bottom of the frame thanks to Abigail Reed’s RBI-double, Jocelyn Winebrenner’s sac fly and Harsh’s second homer. It upped the lead to 10-3 before Winebrenner’s walk-off two-run single in the fifth brought an abrupt end to the contest.

Audrey Barnes’ rip through the left side got Huntington on the board in the first. The junior right fielder finished with a team-leading three hits and an RBI.

Karlee Franklin went the distance to earn the complete-game win in the circle. In five innings of work, the rookie pitcher struck out three while giving up 12 hits, three runs and three walks.

Another freshman in Maddie Turner turned in an incredible performance on the mound in the nightcap to pick up win #2 for the Foresters. She surrendered just two hits, a run and two walks while fanning one batter for the complete-game W.

The lone Cougar run came in the first and held until the fifth. Up until that point, HU had hammered out five hits and left four runners stranded but things finally came together in the home half of the frame.

With two outs and bases loaded compliments of singles by Kiera Stacy, Jenessa Hasty and Hines, Courtney Mason dropped one into right field to knock in the tying run after which Barnes’ RBI-fielder’s-choice represented the go ahead run.

After a three up, three down top of the sixth, back-to-back base pokes by Winebrenner and Stacy set the stage for Walker’s blast into right center for a two-run triple that padded the lead by two more.

Turner went back to work in the seventh to retire the side in order to slam the door shut on any MVNU notion of a heroic finish.

Hasty, Hines, Barnes, Winebrenner and Stacy posted two hits apiece to make for a balanced Forester attack.

Huntington (6-19, 4-10) is back in action on Friday to host Saint Francis at 3:00 p.m.