North Knox softball hangs close to 4A Panthers

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North Knox softball hangs close to 4A Panthers

Photo by Travis David | North Knox's Baylee McClure takes a swing at the plate in the first inning Thursday night. McClure recorded a hit, scored a run and had an outfield assist in the Warriors' loss to Bloomington South.
BY TRAVIS DAVID
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BICKNELL — The North Knox softball team has their nickname “Warriors” printed across the chest of the jerseys worn Thursday night.

 

And that is exactly the way the team played, like Warriors.

 

The small 2A program battled 4A Bloomington South down to the final inning before dropping an 8-4 decision.

 

The loss dropped the Warriors’ record to 1-1 on the year.

 

The Panthers broke open a 1-run game by scoring five times in the top of the seventh inning to all but seal the game.

 

“That is a 4A school and we stayed right there with them,” Warriors’ coach Emily Carroll said of the challenge. “When you hear ‘Bloomington South’ coming from a little school like us, you think, ‘oh my gosh,’ but our girls came to play tonight.”

After falling behind 8-2 in the seventh, North Knox did not go down without a fight.

 

Lead-off hitter Javen Miller reached base on a fielding error with one out and moved around to third base on a single by Baylee McClure. Miller scored on a single by Ally Crist before McClure raced home on a bunt from Ellie Allen.

 

The rally came to an end when Charleston Southern University signee Kinsey Clopton recorded her 12th punchout of the game. 

 

Clopton entered the circle in relief in the fourth inning. After issuing a walk to the first batter she faced, Clopton fanned the next 11 batters before Miller was able to put a ball into play. The 6-foot right hander recorded four strikeouts in the fourth inning as one batter reached base on a dropped-third strike. 

 

“I don’t think they took us seriously coming in and may have overlooked us,” Carroll said of the Panthers not starting Clopton in the circle. “But when it’s only a one-run game, they knew they had to switch gears so they went to their ace.”

 

South jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the top of the first inning. The Panthers looked poised for an even bigger inning, having runners on the corners and just one out, but the Warriors turned a 4-6-3 double play to end the frame. Audrey Wortsell fielded a hard-hit grounder to second, flipped to Mattilynn Ashley at the bag at second and Ashley fired a strike to first for the twin-killing.

 

Reagan Jones reached on a throwing error and eventually came around to score on a wild pitch in the second inning, pulling the Warriors to within 2-1.

 

After BHSS added a run in the third, the Warriors’ defense made another highlight play to limit the damage. Baylee McClure fielded a ball from her centerfield position and tossed a strike to the plate, gunning down a runner to end the inning.

 

“Our defense is very solid,” the Warriors’ coach said. “I praise the girls daily for that because they work hard, they dive for balls, they run down balls in the air. They would run through a brick building to make a play if someone didn’t stop them. They kept us in this game tonight.”

 

In the home half of the third, North Knox once again cut the Panthers’ lead in half.

 

Photo by Travis David |
North Knox’s Ally Crest slides safely into second base in the third inning Thursday. Crist had two hits in the Warriors’ loss to Bloomington South.

 

Crist reached on a one-out single before scoring on a throwing error.

 

The score remained the same until the Panthers wrapped out four hits in the big seventh inning.

 

South finished the game with nine hits, while the Warriors managed just five knocks. 

 

The Warriors also left seven runners stranded on base and struckout a total of 16 times.

 

“The girls know that was a weak point tonight,” Carroll said of the strikeouts. “But we still had a lot of positives to take away from this game.”

 

Crist went the distance in the circle and suffered the loss. The right hander also had a pair of hits at the plate, had an RBI and scored a run.

 

McClure, Allen and Graci LeRoy rounded out the offensive attack in the loss.

 

North Knox (1-1) returns to the diamond on Saturday with a pair of games in the Princeton Invitational. 


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