By Todd Fertig
TopSports.news
Shawnee Heights battered visitor Turner High School at the Lake Shawnee Softball Complex Friday night, outscoring the Bears 30-5 in a United Kansas Conference doubleheader.
Shawnee Heights junior Cianna Graves had four doubles in Friday's UKC doubleheader sweep over Turner. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]
The T-Birds cranked out 17 runs in the first three innings to quickly dispatch the visitors 17-2 in the first game.
Junior catcher Cianna Graves belted a double in each of the three frames, three of the team’s 12 hits. Senior pitcher Grace Proctor held the Bears to two runs in the shortened match.
Shawnee Heights senior Grace Proctor picked up the pitching win in the T-Birds' 17-2 first-game win over Turner. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]
By scoring 10 runs in the first inning of the second game, the T-Birds threatened to finish the sweep in two three-inning games. But after getting up 13-0 in the second inning, they failed to post the requisite 15-run lead to put it away.
Turner plated three runs in the top of the fifth, but it wasn’t enough to extend the game further. T-Bird sophomore Haven Ellenburg threw all five innings for the victory in the second game.
“Our pitchers did really well tonight,” said T-Bird coach Tara Griffith. “(Grace) came out and threw a great first game. Towards the end of the second game, we had a little struggle, but I think they’re young and they’re doing a really good job. Haven is just a sophomore so she’s coming along well.”
Graves picked up her fourth double of the evening in the second game as the team scratched out 11 hits.
“At the beginning of the season, I wasn’t hitting that well. So, coming out being able to do something for the team really felt good,” Graves said. “I’m really excited that we have a team like this. We’re bonding really well on and off the field. I feel like we’re communicating well and just working together.”
The T-Birds improved to 6-2 on the season, their only losses coming at Basehor-Linwood.
“After today I feel really good about where we’re at,” Griffith said. “I’ve been real hard on the girls in the past few, probably, weeks, just trying to get them to get our offense together. And I thought we really answered well today, so I’m proud of how they’ve grown and the work that they’ve been putting in.”
GAME 1
SHAWNEE HEIGHTS 17, TURNER 2
Turner 101— 2 2 3
Shawnee Heights 449 — 17 12 2
Ad. Ruby, Hanna (2) and Madrigal, Dillard (2). Proctor and Graves. W — Proctor. L — Ruby. 2B — Shawnee Heights: Graves 3, Proctor, Harrington.
GAME 2
SHAWNEE HEIGHTS 13, TURNER 3
Turner (3-8) 000 03 — 3 4 2
Shawnee Heights (6-2) (10)30 0x — 13 11 1
Brooks, Ad. Ruby (1) and Madrigal. Ellenburg and Graves, Blevins (2). W — Ellenburg. L — Brooks. 2B — Shawnee Heights: Graves, Munoz. Turner: Guerrero, Dillard.
