Pontiac produces strong week on softball diamond

Aubry Shepherd kept the bats of Illinois Valley Central quiet and Pontiac scored in each of the four innings in a 10-0 Illini Prairie Conference softball contest Friday at The Diamond at Williamson Field.

Shepherd held the Grey Ghosts to just two hits while striking out five in the five-inning game. One of those hits came on the first batter of the game.

The Amerinds followed a typical M.O. in getting on top quickly. Maddie Gourley singled, Elena Krause doubled and Bailey Masching singled as PTHS went up 2-0 after just three batters in the home half of the first inning. India Mattingly doubled in a run and Olivia Lindsay singled home the fourth marker. Krause doubled in another run in the second frame and Pontiac scored four more times in the third. Masching tripled and scored in the fourth to make it a 10-run difference.

Krause registered two doubles, a single and drove in two runs for Pontiac (6-4). Gourley also had three hits and Masching collected a triple, single and RBI. Lindsay had two hits and drove in a run while Mattingly doubled and drove in a run. Tessa Collins had a hit and RBI and Adriann Sutton singled.

Pontiac 13, Herscher 1 — Pontiac did most of its damage in the first three innings and ended the game when Bailey Masching went yard with a three-run blast in this nonconference contest on Wednesday.

Masching had a homer, triple and single and drove in four runs. Elena Krause had a triple and single and, like Masching, scored three times. Olivia Lindsay had a double and RBI and Cadence Helms, Adriann Sutton and Tessa Collins each had a hit and RBI. Maddie Gourley singled.

Krause fanned eight in the five-inning game.

Pontiac 7, Rantoul 1 — At Rantoul, Elena Krause allowed one hit and fanned 13 in five innings in the circle to pace Pontiac to an Illini Prairie Conference win on April 8.

Krause had three hits and two runs batted in and Gourley had a pair of doubles and two RBIs. Bailey Masching had a double, single and two RBIs. Aubrey Shepherd pitched the final two frames, striking out one.

Pontiac Twin Bill — Pontiac gained a split in a doubleheader with Reed-Custer and Auburn on April 6.

After falling behind early, PTHS lost 12-10 to Reed-Custer in the opener despite a six-run rally in the sixth inning. Elena Krause had three doubles and drove in two runs to lead the offense. Bailey Masching had a double, single and two runs batted in. India Mattingly had two hits while Adriann Sutton had a hit and three RBIs. Kendall Pitchford had a hit and two RBIs and Maddie Gourley, Olivia Lindsay and Tessa Collins each singled.

Aubrey Shepherd took the loss in the circle She fanned four. Natalie Zimmerman struck out in relief and Krause punched out the two batters she faced in the last inning.

Krause set down 17 Auburn batters as Pontiac posted an 8-0 win in its other game. On offense, Krause helped her cause with three hits, three runs scored and two runs driven in. Gourley also had three hits, including a double, and Masching collected two hits and four RBIs. Lindsay had a hit and two RBIs and Cadence Helms singled.

Dwight 6, Peotone 1 — At Peotone, Taylor Heath got some run support while limiting Peotone’s chances as the Trojans triumphed on Friday. Heath helped herself with a home run and triple and two runs batted in. In the circle, she allowed three hits and struck out 12.

Mady Ely had a homer and two doubles while driving in three runs as DTHS improved to 5-4. Megan Livingston had a triple and single and Averi Jury singled.

St. Bede 7-7, Dwight 3-3 — Dwight lost its third straight game, and second to St. Bede as the Bruins claimed their second 7-3 victory in Tri-County Conference play Thursday. Dwight led 3-2 before St. Bede scored five runs in the fifth inning to clinch the home and home series.

Taylor Heath had three hits, including a double, and Avery Scheuer had two hits and drove in two runs for the Trojans (4-4). Mady Ely, who had a base hit, took the loss in the circle despite striking out eight.

In Tuesday’s matchup, St. Bede got off to a fast start and held the Trojans in check. Taylor Heath took the loss, striking out 12 in going the distance.

Heath had a double and single while Avery Scheuer also doubled and Megan Livingston and Averi Jury each singled.

Serena 4, Dwight 2 — At Dwight, Serena scored twice in the top of the seventh inning to edge past DTHS in nonconference play. The game was tied at 2-2 entering the final frame.

Taylor Frobish had the big hit for the Trojans with a two-run single in the last of the fourth to tie the game at 2-2. Avery Scheuer, Averi Jury, Taylor Heath and Megan Livingston also singled in the game.

Heath took the loss in relief. She struck out three in two innings. Madi Ely started and fanned four in five frames in the circle.

Lincoln 7, Prairie Central 6— At Lincoln, Prairie Central rallied late but fell short as the Hawks dropped a nonconference game on Friday. Lincoln led by a run when it batted in the sixth inning. The Railsplitters plated three in the sixth.

The Hawks got those three runs back in the top of the seventh but left the tying run on second base. Kate Slagel had two hits, including a double, and drove in three runs. Sam Slagel homered while Faith Fields and Rylee Galloway each doubled. Faith Fields had a double and two RBIs and Dixie Hogan, Kyah Creek, Jules Woodrey and Lucy Whitfill had one hit apiece.

Woodrey took the loss despite striking out five. Hogan fanned one in her inning of relief.

Prairie Central-Rantoul — At Fairbury, a pair of three-run innings helped Prairie Central drop Rantoul in an Illini Prairie Conference game on Thursday. Sam Slagel had a pair of doubles, a single and drove in three runs to pace the Hawks (8-6). Jules Woodrey homered and drove in two while Kate Slagel doubled.

Faith Fields fanned 10 to earn the win in the circle. Dixie Hogan had a strike out in closing out the victory.

Central Catholic 7, Prairie Central 5 — At Bloomington, Prairie Central just couldn’t get over the top as the Hawks lost an Illini Prairie Conference game to host Central Catholic on April 8. Dixie Hogan took the loss despite fanning four. Faith Fields struck out two.

Sam Slagel had three hits, including a home run to lead the offense. Lucy Whitfill had two hits with Kyah Creek and Jules Woodrey each recording one hit.

Prairie Central Twin Bill — At Fairbury, Prairie Central scored two wins in a three-team doubleheader on April 6. The Hawks topped Bismarck-Henning 13-7 in the first game.

Dixie Hogan had a two-run double in the first and a two-run single in the fourth. Hogan had three hits and four RBIs while Lucy Whitfill and Kate Slagel each had three hits and drove in three runs. Kyah Creek had a double and two singles and Kristyn Atkins had two hits and an RBI. Jules Woodrey doubled and Kyla Stephens had a hit and RBI.

Prairie Central collected 24 hits in an 18-4 win over Lexington-Ridgeview in the second game. Whitfill and Woodrey each had four hits and four RBIs to lead the offense. Lydia Kilgus collected a double, two singles and two runs batted in and Hogan and Rylee Galloway had three hits apiece. Faith Fields homered and drove in two runs. Hogan and Fields each fanned two in combining for the win in the circle.

Tri-Valley 8, Lexington-Ridgeview 5— At Downs, a three-run homer lifted Tri-Valley past Lexington-Ridgeview in a Heart of Illinois Conference contest Thursday. The game was tied when the Vikings batted in the last inning.

Allison Epley had a double, single and drove in three runs for the Minutemen (6-10). Makayla Ziegler also had two hits that included a two-bagger. Eva McCue and Mackenzie Wesson also recorded doubles. Belle Payne took the loss in the circle. She fanned two.

GCMS 6, Lexington-Ridgeview 5 — At Gibson City, a run in the last of the ninth inning lifted Gibson City-Melvin-Sibley past the Minutemen in a Heart of Illinois Conference tilt on Wednesday. Lexington-Ridgeview scored three times in the seventh to lead by a run but GCMS tied in the bottom of the seventh. Belle Payne took the loss in going the distance in the circle.

Eleana Atkins had a double, single and RBI and Hailey Foote had two hits and two RBIs for Lexington-Ridgeview. Makayla Ziegler doubled and Carlie Mackinson and Allison Epley each singled.

Lexington-Ridgeview 18, EPG 3 — At Lexington, Mackenzie Wesson went yard twice and drove in four runs to pace Lexington-Ridgeview past El Paso-Gridley on April 8. Makayla Ziegler had a homer, double and two RBIs. Multiple hits also came from Allison Epley (three singles, RBI), Hailey Foote (double, single, two RBIs), Eva McCue and Carlie Mackinson (each with two singles and an RBI). Eleana Atkins had a homer and two RBIs. Belle Payne fanned three in a four-inning outing.

Nickelle Cummings had a triple for the Titans. Morgan Seggerman, Tori Seggerman, Gracie Sieger, Alexis Elliott and Lexi Schouweiler had one hit each. Sieger and Cummings pitched.

Bismarck-Henning 12, Lexington-Ridgeview9 — At Fairbury, the Minutemen led 3-0 before Bismarck-Henning got going in their contest on April 6. The Blue Devils went on to win after holding off a late rally.

Eleana Atkins had a homer, triple and single while driving in three runs for Lexington-Ridgeview. Makayla Ziegler had a pair of doubles and three RBIs and Brenna Stover had three hits, including two two-baggers. Josie Thomas had two hits and Mackenzie Wesson had a hit and RBI.

Emilee Bratcher took the loss, fanning three before yielding to Emma Stover, who had one strikeout in finishing up.

WFC 5-4, Putnam County 1-6 — Woodland-Flanagan-Cornell (7-5) drew a split with Putnam County in their Tri-County home-and-home series. The Warriors dropped the second game after the Panthers scored twice in the fourth inning of the shortened contest.

Ella Derossett had two hits and drove in two runs for WFC. Emma Palaschack doubled. Shae Simons took the loss in relief, fanning two in two innings. Lilly Libby fanned one in going the first two innings.

At Woodland, Shae Simons doubled and had two runs batted in at the plate and fanned 14 in tossing a one-hitter for a Woodland-Flanagan-Cornell victory. Emma Palaschack tripled, singled and plated two runs while Lilly Libby also had two hits. Ella Derossett and Jaylei Leininger each singled.

Reed-Custer 1, WFC 0 — At Braidwood, it took Reed-Custer eight innings to push across the only run of the game as the Comets edged Woodland-Flanagan-Cornell on Wednesday.

Shae Simons took the loss in going the distance. She fanned six. Emma Palaschack had two hits while Olivia Chismarick, Ella Derossett, Kaiden Connor, Kaylee Henert and Jaylei Leininger each singled.

WFC 5, Clifton 0 — At Clifton, Shae Simons struck out 19 in tossing a two-hit shutout for a Woodland-Flanagan-Cornell nonconference win on April 6. Simons helped her cause with three hits and two RBIs.

Emma Palaschack had two doubles and Ella Derossett had two singles. Kaylee Henert, Lilly Libby and Jaylei Leininger each singled. Kaiden Connor drove in two runs.

This article originally appeared on Pontiac Daily Leader: Pitching leads Pontiac to league victories