By William / www.mcpherson-county-ks.com
LINDSBORG – It was a rough pair of home games for the Smoky Valley softball team on Thursday as they gave up a total of 26 runs and 30 hits in losing both ends of a doubleheader to Halstead, losing 11-6 and 15-3.
The losses drop the Lady Vikings to just 5-5 overall for the season as they now prep to return to the competitive diamond on Tuesday at Pratt.
In game one, the Lady Vikings took an early 6-3 lead after the first two innings and were still tied at 6-6 after four innings before Halstead put a run on the board in the fifth and another four in the sixth to earn the final 11-6 victory.
Karee Adam dropped to 3-3 on the season as she pitched the complete game for Smoky Valley.
Maliyah Koster knocked in three runs in the first inning with a triple while Catherine O’Dell scored twice thanks to hitting a double. Both Karee Adam and Madi Tolle led the Lady Vikings with each recording a pair of hits.
In the nightcap, the Lady Vikings did not score until the bottom of the sixth when they were already trailing 8-0. Halstead pounded out seven runs in the top of the seventh and Smoky Valley could only muster two more runs in their scorebook, giving Halstead the final 16-3 win.
Maggie Ryals pitched for Smoky Valley and drops to 2-2 for the season.
Big hitters for the Lady Vikings included a home run by Madi Tolle, and doubles by both Maliyah Koster and Tinley Scott.
SMOKY VALLEY LADY VIKINGS host Halstead
GAME 1:
Halstead 1-2-1-2-1-4-0=11-14-1
LADY VIKINGS 5-1-0-0-0-0-0=6-9-1
LADY VIKING PITCHING: Karee Adam pitched, is now 3-3 for the season.
LADY VIKING HITTING: Catherine O’Dell had a double and scored two runs; Karee Adam had two hits; Madi Tolle had two hits; Maliyah Koster had a triple and three runs batted in.
GAME 2:
Halstead 0-3-1-1-2-1-7=15-16-1
LADY VIKINGS 0-0-0-0-0-1-2=3-4-4
LADY VIKING PITCHING: Maggie Ryals pitched, now 2-2 for the season.
LADY VIKING HITTING: Madi Tolle had a home run, scored a run, and knocked in a run; Maliyah Koster had a double and scored a run; Maggie Ryals had a run batted in; Rylie Tolle scored a run; Tinley Scott had a double.
(William is a free-lance writer covering McPherson County Activities – he can be reached at crossdovewriter@gmail.com)