Moses Lake sweeps the Cadets the hard way
Moses Lake sweeps the Cadets the hard way
Moses Lake — Tuesday's rain delay only delayed Moses Lake from sweeping Eisenhower's softball team.
Wednesday, when the game finally got under way, the Chiefs pulled off 10-0 and 14-0 wins over the Cadets. Despite the obvious advantage Moses Lake held over Eisenhower, head coach Alan Coulter wasn't going to sit back and relax. In fact, it was closer to the opposite.
"This is the kind of game where we can work on some things," Alan Coulter said.
From base running to situational hitting, the Chiefs were in a constant workout on the diamond. The payoff was 24 runs scored and two straight wins to pull Moses Lake back to .500 in the Big Nine.
"It got the bats woke up a little bit," Alan Coulter said about the advantage of the doubleheader. "It wasn't the best pitching we have seen all year, but it gave us some experience on the bases and everyone contributed."
Moses Lake ended the first game with a 10-0 win in five innings and after a short break, started the second game the same way.
Heather Coulter controlled the mound, allowing two hits and three batters on base, while picking up 10 strikeouts. Her counterpart, Kayla Watkins, struggled through three innings, allowing 12 runs on 10 hits, while walking nine batters in the game.
Eisenhower had to play damage control in game two, starting in the first inning, after Bailey Millican reached on a Watkins throwing error. She later scored on a Shelly McCuistion groundout. Jayme Albrandt later doubled down the right field line to score courtesy runner Jhenesis Garza.
In the second, Heather Coulter struck out the side, then Shayla May started a three-run rally with a one-out single. Watkins then hit Ashley Haight and walked Crystal Mabry to load the bases. Millican and Coulter picked up back to back walks to score two more runs and McCuistion had a sacrifice fly to center field to score Mabry to push the lead to 5-0.
Alldey Star broke up Heather Coulter's perfect game with an infield single in the third, before Coulter got Kayla Bishop to pop out to the catcher.
May followed with an RBI single in the bottom of the third and Heather Coulter helped her cause with a two-run single to left field. Moses Lake secured the win in the bottom of the fourth when Alexis Ballinger hit a two-run home run, driving in Mattie Zayas, who homered in the first game.
"Just the experience," Alan Coulter said Moses Lake needed in a doubleheader like Eisenhower to get ready for Southridge, who is 6-2 in league, on Friday.