The Morris softball team couldn’t have found a better way to both start and end Saturday’s nonconference game against Plainfield South.

After Morris pitcher Mylie Hughes retired the side in order in the top of the first with the help of a 4-6-3 double play, Halie Olson homered off the scoreboard in left to open the bottom of the inning, sparking a nine-run rally that saw both Olson and Cami Pfeifer record two hits and two RBIs each.

In the bottom of the fourth, freshman Ally Coregaert stepped up for her first varsity at-bat with two runners on and promptly deposited a pitch over the left-field fence that put the final touches on a 17-0 win and saw Morris improve to 3-0 on the year.

“I was really nervous,” Croegaert said about her first varsity at-bat, “but we have the type of team that once a few people get some hits, it gets contagious.

“All of the girls have been very welcoming to the underclassmen, and we have been having a lot of fun.”

After Olson’s homer leading off the bottom of the first, the fun continued as Aubrey McConnell walked and stole second before coming home on a single by Pfeifer. Hughes followed with a single, and Alyssa Jepson brought home both Pfeifer and courtesy runner Anslie Rink. Addy Hackett singled in Jepson for a 5-0 lead.

Ava Petersen later added an RBI single, as did Olson and Pfeifer, before the inning was over.

Plainfield South (0-3) got its only hit when Gracie Semega singled to lead off the top of the second. Addie Koser drew a walk with one out to put two runners on, but Hughes got out of the inning by inducing a popup to second and a strikeout. Tessa Cryder threw a perfect third inning for Morris, while Rink came on and struck out two in her one inning of work.

Meanwhile, the Morris offense kept churning.

They were able to put three more runs up in the bottom of the second on an RBI double by Tessa Shannon. Ella Urbasek singled to move Shannon to third, and a grounder to third by Petersen scored Shannon. Olson then tripled to right to score Urbasek for a 12-0 lead.

Morris got two more in the bottom of the third. Cryder doubled with one out and came around to score on a double by Kaelin Strainis. Peyton Zomboracz followed with a single up the middle to send Strainis to third, and Strainis scored on a sacrifice fly to center by Bri Enerson.

In the bottom of the fourth, Olson came up with a runner on needing a double to complete the cycle. She singled for her fourth hit, setting the stage for Croegaert’s game-ender.

It was quite a change for Morris, which had to rally for four runs in the bottom of the seventh Friday to defeat Joliet Catholic 5-4.

“I knew I needed a double in my last at-bat for the cycle, but I’ll take a big win like this any day,” Olson said. “It’s a lot easier to play when you are ahead.

“I worked on my hitting a lot in the offseason, breaking things down. I have been hitting off live pitching for a while, so getting to see that early has helped me be pretty comfortable at the plate.

“We all feed off each other. When we start hitting, it’s like a domino effect, and everyone hits. It has been fun.”

Morris coach Jen Bamonte has been particularly enamored of what she has seen from her club so far.

“Up and down our lineup, and even the girls on the bench, everyone can hit,” she said. “I don’t think we’ve ever had a full team, including the girls on the bench, that can all step in and hit. And a lot of them play multiple positions, so it’s easier to get them at-bats so they are ready when we need them. ...

“Mylie threw a strong two innings, and Tessa Cryder and Anslie Rink pitched well when they came in.”

Plainfield South coach Taylor Schwall has a young team this season, but saw some positives.

“Our pitchers threw strikes,” Schwall said. “It’s one thing to get beat when the other team just hits well, like Morris did today. What we don’t want is for us to be putting runners on base and making it easier for the other team. We didn’t do that today. We threw strikes and played good defense. They just hit the ball where we weren’t.

“We’re young and we are going to take our lumps early. But we are getting valuable experience against good teams every time we go out there, so we will keep improving as the year goes on.”