By RICHIE HALL
FISHERS – One big hit and one big defensive play added up to a nice win for the Fishers softball team.
The Tigers hosted Hamilton Southeastern Tuesday in the Mudsock game. Fishers scored a run in the fourth inning, and that was all the Tigers needed for a 1-0 victory over the Royals.
Hailey Trueblood got on base with a one-out single, then stole second base. Brooke Johnson batted in Trueblood with a left field hit, and Fishers was on top.
“For a long time, I was just wondering if anybody was going to be able to get somebody to second base,” said Tigers coach Daren James. Both teams only had one hit going into the bottom of the fourth inning.
“It was big getting that steal, getting (Trueblood) into scoring position,” said James. “Then Brooke had a great at-bat to get that run home.”
Fishers finished with five hits for the game. Trueblood and Johnson both totaled two hits, with Sophie Schoch getting one.
Meanwhile, Tigers pitcher Kate Murray threw an excellent game. She only allowed two hits and three walks, while striking out eight.
“She’s been fantastic for a while now,” said James, who said Murray has a streak of 22 scoreless innings.
“She’s on fire right now,” said James. “She’s dialed in. She’s hitting her spots.”
(Frank Brown)
The pitchers for both teams threw solid games. Fishers’ Kate Murray (top) tossed eight strikeouts and allowed only two hits, while Southeastern’s Grace Swedarsky (above) had 14 strikeouts and no walks. (Frank Brown)
Southeastern caused some nervous moments in the top of the sixth inning. Addy Justice got on base with a center field base hit, then stole second. Moments later, Payton Fox drew a walk. But Murray induced a pop out for one out, then Azstryd Alexander initiated a double play, stepping on the third base bag before throwing to Taylor Duplessis for the third out.
“Those plays really save games, especially not knowing who’s up next or what they could do,” said Alexander. “So those plays and knowing those situations really help you.”
Fox had the other base hit for the Royals. Grace Swedarsky pitched a great game as well, with 14 strikeouts and no walks.
“We didn’t put the ball in play,” said Southeastern coach Dave Cook. “We got two hits. (Murray) got rolling and I think she got better as the game went on.”
The game was also a Hoosier Crossroads Conference game; both teams are 2-1 in HCC play. Fishers is 7-3 overall and travels to Mount Vernon Thursday, while the Royals are 12-4 and host Pendleton Heights on Friday.
FISHERS 1, HAMILTON SOUTHEASTERN 0
Southeastern AB R H RBI
Lani Wyrick 3 0 0 0
Addy Justice 3 0 1 0
Payton Fox 2 0 1 0
Sayla Stock 2 0 0 0
Morgan Hicks 3 0 0 0
Steph Penny 2 0 0 0
Jenna Chase 1 0 0 0
Madi Yankauskas 3 0 0 0
Alex Kiemeyer 2 0 0 0
Tessa Sexauer 1 0 0 0
Ella Francis 0 0 0 0
Totals 22 0 2 0
SB: Justice. HBP: Francis.
HSE pitching IP R ER H
Grace Swedarsky 6 1 1 5
Strikeouts: Swedarsky 14. Walks: none.
Fishers AB R H RBI
Jenna Grubb 3 0 0 0
Hailey Trueblood 3 1 2 0
Azstryd Alexander 3 0 0 0
Brooke Johnson 3 0 2 1
Hailey Kinder 2 0 0 0
Kate Murray 2 0 0 0
Sophie Schoch 2 0 1 0
Kendall Jordan 2 0 0 0
Ashtin Grubb 2 0 0 0
Victoria Abel 0 0 0 0
Totals 22 1 5 1
SB: Trueblood 2, Abel.
Fishers pitching IP R ER H
Murray 7 0 0 2
Strikeouts: Murray 8. Walks: Murray 3.
Score by innings
Southeastern 000 000 0 – 0 2 0
Fishers 000 100 x – 1 5 0