A high school player of any sport gets only one senior night. It’s a special time to honor those seniors in the program and the contributions they have made.

Romeoville‘s Lilly Roberts turned senior night into her own personal stage Tuesday in the Spartans’ 12-2 Southwest Prairie Conference softball win over Joliet Central.

At the plate, Roberts, a Wayne State University (Mich.) recruit, went 2 for 2 with a home run, a walk, three runs scored and three RBIs. She also started and went the full five innings in the circle, allowing two runs (1 earned) on five hits while striking out 13.

“This was an extremely fun senior night,” Roberts said. “This is the most fun team I have ever been on. They have so much energy and they are such a silly group of girls, in a fun way. We never have any trouble staying loose on the bench.

“My pitching was going pretty well today. I threw a lot of strikes. Once we got a good-sized lead, I felt like I could let things go at the plate and swing for the fences. I happened to get a good pitch and hit one out.”

Roberts’ home run came in the bottom of the third inning, and it drove home Sara Miftari, who had walked, ahead of her. Miftari finished 1 for 1 with three walks and scored three times in the game.

The Spartans (5-12, 2-6) were able to score seven runs in the bottom of the first inning without recording a hit as they were the beneficiaries of five walks and five hit batters.

They nearly scored even more, but Joliet Central center fielder Haydn Voss tracked down Roberts’ long fly ball with the bases loaded for a sacrifice fly instead of it getting over her head for a bases-clearing double or triple.

“I was really happy with our plate discipline,” Romeoville coach Joel Kussman said. “We talked about it before the game and we only wanted to swing at pitches in the zone. After we got the lead, we opened things up a little. Today showed the girls that a walk can be just as important as a hit. We need to get runners on base, then we can do more things.

“Lilly Roberts has been a joy to have for the last four years. When she’s on the mound, we know we have a chance in any game. We’re a real young team. Of the 26 players in our program, 21 are freshmen or sophomores. So, they are still learning. By the time the postseason rolls around, they’ll have a full season of experience.”

Not only did Voss make a sparkling defensive play in center for the Steelman, but left fielder Jordyn Poke threw a Romeoville runner out at home. Central scored both of its runs in the top of the third. Alissa Elliott led off with a single and went to third on a throwing error on a ball hit by Voss, putting runners on first and third. Sophie Litsogannis (2 for 3, 2 RBIs) then singled to right, scoring both Elliott and Voss, who sped all the way around from first.

“If you take that first inning away, we really played well,” Joliet Central coach Rachel Spata said. “The thing is, it seems like we have an inning like that almost every game. Our defense played very well today. I’m not mad in the slightest about anything we did today.

“Our girls knew where they were supposed to play the hitters, and they did what they needed to do in the field. Both Haydn Voss and Sophie Litsogannis have been on the varsity for four years, and it has been fun to see their growth.”