By ISAAC DEER
TopSports.news
After taking bumps and bruises in a forgetful week last week, Shawnee Heights rebounded by shutting out United Kansas Conference foe Leavenworth 15-0, 15-0 in a doubleheader sweep at the Lake Shawnee Complex on Tuesday evening.
Shawnee Heights sophomore pitcher Grace Proctor pitched a first-game no-hitter in Tuesday's 15-0 UKC softball win over Leavenworth. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]
Shawnee Heights junior Karlyn Bowman (4) watches her second-game home run in the T-Birds' 15-0 softball win over Leavenworth. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]
It was pretty much a perfect day at the ballpark for Shawnee Heights. The only thing that went wrong for the Thunderbirds on Tuesday was that a player was hit with bird droppings out of the air.
But besides the bird-on-bird crime, everything went according to the Thunderbirds’ plan.
Shawnee Heights outscored its conference foe 30-0 in two games that lasted a combined eight innings due to separate run rules.
“It feels really good to bounce back,” Shawnee Heights coach Tara Griffith said. “We had a real tough week last week. Not only did we play Basehor-Linwood, but played Olathe North and Mill Valley and lost both of those. So that was not ideal. It felt really good to bounce back from those losses.”
Leading the way for Shawnee Heights defensively was standout sophomore pitcher Grace Proctor, who pitched a four-inning no-hitter in the first game of the doubleheader, recording eight strikeouts while giving up one walk..
“I was definitely pleased today,” Proctor said. “A no-hitter is something I’ve been striving for pretty much the whole season. So, I was just happy to get one today. The curveball worked the best today. Drops were going good, too.”
In addition to Proctor’s no-hit gem, the Shawnee Heights offensive was explosive. Eight batters had at least one RBI in the first game.
Junior Karlyn Bowman had a memorable day for Shawnee Heights. In both games, Bowman plated in a combined 10 total runs. In the first game, Bowman went 1-2 with four RBI, including a walk-off 2-run single.
“Today was good because last Friday I didn’t hit how I wanted to,” Bowman said. “It was good to come out and see different pitching. I felt good adapting to the different pitching. I think I can always get better. I’ve done okay.”
Three different Shawnee Heights players had multi-RBI performances in the opening 15-0 win. In addition to Bowman's four RBI, Audrey Schulte had three and Korin Gonzalez drove in a pair of runs.
In addition to the multi-RBI slugging trio, Proctor, Alaryce Adams, Taylor Brees, Lilly Blair and Dayana Miller all at least had one RBI for the Thunderbirds in the first contest.
“I think there was more work to be done (in the first game),” Griffith said. “But for the most part, we obviously put up some good runs. We had some good plate discipline, which was good to see.”
Adams followed up Proctor from Game 1 by pitching a four-inning, complete-game shutout for Shawnee Heights in Game 2. Adams struck out four Leavenworth batters while giving up three hits and a walk.
Like the first game, the softball was flying all over the yard for Shawnee Heights in the second game.
Bowman had another flashy showing with a four-RBI game in the second contest. The junior went 3-4, including a powerful two-run home run that soared over deep centerfield.
“I think our energy has been big for us,” Bowman said. “When we get down, sometimes we can lose that energy, so having great energy is so big for the team. If our energy is good, it helps us hit and play better defense.”
Along with Bowman, Proctor, Gonzalez, MacKenzie Birch, Spencer Habig and Odessa Schmidt, each had one run batted in.
“Hopefully, we can lean on the success that we’ve had,” Griffith said. “We have some pretty tough games coming up. But, we will keep building and get better every day.”
Shawnee Heights (8-5) will host Lawrence High on Friday night.
GAME ONE
SHAWNEE HEIGHTS 15, LEAVENWORTH 0
Shawnee Heights 733 2 – 15 8 0
Leavenworth 000 0 – 0 0 3
W – Proctor. L – Carniali. 2B – Shawnee Heights: Adams, Brees, Schulte, Gonzalez. 3B – Shawnee Heights: Miller.
GAME TWO
SHAWNEE HEIGHTS 15, LEAVENWORTH 0
Shawnee Heights (8-5) – 354 3 – 15 11 0
Leavenworth (4-10) – 000 0 – 0 3 4
W – Adams. L – Eagle. 2B – Shawnee Heights: Adams, Gonzalez. 3B – Leavenworth: Eagle. HR – Shawnee Heights: Bowman.
