Morris softball rallies past L-P on Senior Day

Redskins score four in bottom of the sixth in 5-3 win

MORRIS – A big rally in the bottom of the sixth inning on May 22 propelled the Morris softball team to a 5-3 win over Interstate Eight Conference rival LaSalle-Peru.

On Senior Day, all four Morris seniors – Kennedy Dransfeldt, Sara Thomas, Taylor Nelson and Maddy Hughes – played their parts in the comeback victory.

Hughes drew her third walk of the day in the bottom of the sixth with one out and a runner at first. Madigan Doss followed with a walk to load the bases, and Kylee Claypool hit into a fielder’s choice to third, with courtesy runner Addison Stacy out at home. Dransfeldt followed with an infield single that scored Hughes, and Doss came in to score when the throw to first went wide, with Claypool reaching third and Dransfeldt second. Jaelyn Wiers then dropped a bloop double to left, scoring both Claypool and Dransfeldt for a 5-3 lead.

Earlier in the game, Thomas had snared two hard-hit line drives, and in the top of the seventh, Nelson recorded the final two putouts on fly balls to right.

“It was great that all of the seniors contributed on Senior Day,” Morris coach Jen Bamonte said.

The Redskins (11-9, 8-3) scored first in the bottom of the first inning when Dransfeldt led off with a bunt back to the pitcher. The throw to first was wide, and Dransfeldt sped all the way to third. Wiers followed with a bloop single to right, scoring Dransfeldt for a 1-0 lead. This was after pitcher Maddie Noon got out of a jam in the top of the first, stranding runners on second and third.

“That first inning was huge for us,” Bamonte said. “We have been giving up runs in the first inning and playing from behind all game. Today, Maddie got out of the jam in the first and then we got the lead.”

L-P, which was 17-2 and ranked No. 2 in the state in Class 3A entering the game, got four straight hits to start the third inning, with singles by Taylor Martyn and Kaitlyn Gibson each driving in a run before Noon retired the next three batters without further damage. The Lady Cavaliers tacked on another run in the top of the fourth on a squeeze bunt by Paige Kirkman, scoring Lauren Phillips, who had reached on an error.

Ella Davis relieved Noon on the mound in the middle of the fourth and threw four scoreless innings, striking out two. And the Morris duguout, usually a relatively quiet place, was loud and boistrous throughout the game.

“It was so nice to get a win on Senior Day,” Dransfeldt said. “With this and graduation last [Friday] night, it has been a pretty exciting 24 hours. I was happy to come up that last time with people on base, but I was a little nervous, too. It helped that the bench was loud and into the game.”

It was the second time Morris has beaten L-P this season.

“They have three losses and we have given them two of them,” Bamonte said. “I am so proud of our girls. The whole team was into it. We have a lot of talent, but these girls are usually pretty quiet, so it was nice to have everyone into the game.

“Maddie Noon did a good job of keeping them off balance early, then Ella came in and blew them away. And, all of the seniors made a difference. Sara Thomas at third base didn’t flinch when balls came at her, Taylor Nelson made the last two outs on fly balls, Maddie Hughes sparked us at the start of the sixth and Kennedy came through with a big hit. And Jaelyn Wiers, she’s not a senior, but she couldn’t have placed her ball any better. To get a hit like that with runners in scoring position was huge.”

Rob Oesterle

Rob Oesterle

Rob has been a sports writer for the Morris Herald-News and Joliet Herald-News for more than 20 years.