The Campbell County Camels softball team (2-0 overall) may not have seen the best pitcher or even the best line-up from the county rivals on the road.
But 35 runs in the first two games is impressive. Campbell County recorded another run-ruling against a 9th Region opponent, 16-3 over the Highlands Bluebirds (1-1) in six innings at Winkler Field.
“Highlands is a great team,” said Sandi Kitchen, Campbell County Head Coach. “But to our basic satisfaction, we attacked the ball at the plate. We were very aggressive. I thought we were smart on the base paths, defensively and our pitching really held up to keep us in the game.”
Campbell County batted an impressive .513 (19 for 37) at the plate with six extra-base hits. Senior left fielder Maddie Kramer hit a two-run home run in the top of the second scoring seventh grade pinch runner Josie Feedbeck. Kramer went 2 for 5 with three runs batted in and one run scored.
“It was nice to hit one because we needed that to get the energy up,” Kramer said. “I try not to think too much when I’m at bat. Whatever is in my wheel house, I see it and hit it. That’s pretty much how we roll and it’s been working well for me so I’m going to keep it up.”
The Camels saw eight different players record multi-hit games. Eighth grade third baseman Hope Hamilton went 2 for 4 with two doubles, three RBI and two runs scored. Junior catcher Izzy Whisman went 2 for 3 with one triple, two runs scored and an RBI. Senior center fielder and lead-off hitter Bella Bastin went 2 for 5 with a double, two RBI and two runs scored. Freshman second baseman Moriah Price had the other Campbell County double going 3 for 5 with three RBI and one run scored.
Junior Page Stewart started on the mound picking up the win for Campbell County. She pitched three innings before moving to second base. At the plate, she went 3 for 4.
Junior Alex Leicht pitched the final three innings striking out two not allowing any runs. She escaped a bases-loaded jam in the fifth inning with one out. She got Highlands senior left fielder Hailey Parks to hit into a force play at home and sophomore shortstop Bailey Markus to ground out back to her. Highlands made four errors to one for Campbell County.
“My defense played really well behind me,” Leicht said. “I pitched well. But I can’t do it all. The chemistry on this team is very good.”
Freshman right fielder Jayci Kremer and eight grade shortstop Sam Perry had two hits each. Kremer scored once and drove one in with Perry scoring twice.
Campbell County played some reserves in the game as well. Kitchen pointed out pinch runner Josie Feebeck is a seventh grader. Feebeck scored twice in the win.
“We have three pitchers and they can all play a position on defense, too so they’re not one-position players,” Kitchen said. “They can all hit so that’s a plus for us. Getting kids involved this early in the season is huge just for the experience with the youth that we have. (The Bluebirds) are a very competitive team at the plate.”
Junior Carly Cramer started the game and took the loss for Highlands before eighth grader Kaitlyn Dixon finished it. But Cramer did go 2 for 4 at the plate with a double. Dixon went 2 for 3 with one run scored.
Highlands hit .370 (10 for 27) at the plate with four players recording multi-hit games. Sophomore third baseman Michelle Barth reached base all four times drawing two walks and going 2 for 2. Junior right fielder Kennedy Baioni went 2 for 4 with one double and one RBI.
Highlands did trim the Campbell County lead to 9-3 in the bottom of the third. But Campbell County scored five times in the top of the sixth to force the run-ruling.
Highlands Head Coach Milt Horner said he tried a line-up Tuesday that the Bluebirds may not try the rest of the season. Only eighth grader Morgan Pompilio at second base and senior Eleanor Todd at first base started at the same positions as the 4-3 win against Harrison County on Monday.
“We made a serious base running error that took our momentum away,” Horner said. “If we’d have scored the three or four runs we should have scored there, it would have been a different game and I didn’t want to pitch Kennedy back-to-back this early in the season. She threw 95 pitches (against Harrison County on Monday).”
Both teams have home games Thursday. Campbell County takes on Grant County (2-0) at 5:30 p.m. Highlands plays host to Lloyd Memorial (0-2-1) on Thursday at 5 p.m.
Softball:
Simon Kenton 9, Pendleton County 7 (8 innings):
The Pioneers (4-1) ventured to Falmouth and took down the 10th Region champion favorite LadyCats in their season opener.
“Pendleton County the last couple years has definitely been a measuring stick, a model of consistency,” said Chris Young, Simon Kenton Head Coach. “Our girls showed some grit to fight back and manufacture some runs in the top of the eighth to come away with a win.”
Simon Kenton pounded out an impressive 12 hits in 34 at-bats for a .352 batting average against Pendleton County junior pitcher Kayley Bruener. Bruener has helped Pendleton County to 10th Region appearances last year and as an eighth grader in 2019. The LadyCats have lost in the state quarterfinals both years.
“(She has) the ability to throw pitches on both sides of the plate, up and down and she has one heck of a change-up that she’ll throw at any time,” Young said. “She’s been through the war. She’s led them for years. I can’t say enough about her. She’s a really great kid. I’ve seen her some with my summer team. She’s tough. To do what we did (Wednesday) doesn’t happen very often. You probably won’t see her give up that many runs again anytime soon.”
Bruener did strike out 14 Pioneers to go with six earned runs and five walks. Bruener went 18-7 last year with one save and 263 strikeouts with a 2.06 earned-run averages. In 2019, Bruener went 21-12 with one save and 192 strikeouts with a 3.48 ERA.
Four Pioneers recorded multi-hit games. Sophomore catcher Emilie Young led the way going 3 for 3 with one double, two RBI and a walk. Freshman second baseman Larkin Mitchell went 2 for 3 with three walks and four runs scored. Senior third baseman Hannah Schwier went 2 for 5 with one double and four RBI and sophomore pitcher Landrey Dance went 2 for 5 with one RBI and one run scored.
Dance moved to 2-0 on the season going the distance. She struck out seven to go with one walk and five earned runs. Pendleton County batted .278 (10 for 36) against Dance.
“It was tough. But we battled,” Dance said. “We just tried to stay positive. I’m really happy with how it turned out. It’s awesome. It’s a great feeling.”
Simon Kenton led 5-2 going into the bottom of the seventh. Pendleton County scored three times on a senior Raegan Carlisle three-run home run to tie the game at five and send it to extra innings.
The Pioneers scored four times in the top of the eighth. Schwier doubled in Dance and seventh grade pinch runner Taylor Jones to give Simon Kenton a 9-7 advantage.
Pendleton County did score twice in the bottom of the eighth and put runners at first and third with one out. But Dance struck out Pendleton County freshman second baseman Madison Verst and Carlisle to end the game.
Errors continued to be an issue for Simon Kenton. The Pioneers made five to three for the LadyCats.
Simon Kenton has a game scheduled at Western Hills (3-0) on Wednesday. Game time is 6 p.m.
Conner 17, Scott 7 (6 innings):
The Cougars hit the road for the first time this year and defeated the Eagles in their first home game this season. Both teams are 2-1 on the season.
This is technically the third year for Conner Head Coach Shawn Sproles, a former Boone County and Highlands assistant. The Cougars endured some growing pains in a 12-23 season last spring after not being able to play in 2020.
“They had to learn my system and I had to learn them a little bit,” Sproles said. “I talk about the stability with the coaching staff. We had some troubles. But they were learning experiences. That’s how I kind of viewed it. I was pretty candid about our expectations last year. It was nice going into this year because we’d been able to make that transition. What I’m starting to see now is confidence. We hit the ball really well against a team that beat us both times last year against a pitcher that pitched both games (Scott sophomore Emma Schribner). I think we’re still young. (Tuesday) was the first time that all the bats came together like we taught, coached and told them they would. It was really nice to see.”
The Cougars trailed 5-4 entering the top of the fourth inning. But they plated 10 to go up 14-5 then scored three in the top of the sixth to go up 17-7. Scott scored twice in the bottom of the sixth inning. But Conner held on for the run-ruling. Sproles pointed out last year that mistakes multiplied and opponents put up five runs or more in an inning.
“It’s bigger in team sports that lack confidence than a lot of people think,” Sproles said. “We went into the bottom of the sixth and had two walks to start the inning. At that point, we’re trying to get them to understand that when adversity hits as a team, we can handle adversity. We can play through it and still achieve our goal.”
Sophomore Molly Sharp (2-1) threw a complete game to pick up the win for the Cougars. Sharp struck out six, walked seven and allowed four hits and six earned runs.
Conner batted .448 (13 for 29) for the game with four players recording multi-hit games. Senior Alex Cobble led the way going 4 for 4 with a double, triple, five RBI and three runs scored.
“I think that we’ve all come a long way,” Cobble said. “I’m pretty excited to keep growing this season. I’m proud of myself. I’ve definitely improved since last year. It was nice to get some hits. I’m excited to see out three and four hitters Molly (Sharp) and (sophomore first baseman) Jalyn (Cain) get some power behind their swings. That should be good this season. I think we’re going to keep developing.”
Junior center fielder Kiera Holeman went 2 for 3 with one RBI, two walks and three runs scored for Conner. Sharp went 2 for 5 with a double, two RBI and one run scored with senior catcher Haley Kersker going 20 for 5 with two RBI.
Scott has a home game scheduled against Gallatin County (1-1) on Wednesday at 5:30 p.m. Conner travels to Oldham County (5-0) on Friday for a 6 p.m. game.
Baseball:
Campbell County 7, Calvary Christian 1:
The Camels (1-1) downed the Cougars (4-1) in a key early 37th District match-up.
Senior Jacob Napier (1-0) threw a complete game for the Camels. Napier struck out 13, walked two and allowed two hits and two walks.
The game stayed tied until the bottom of the fifth inning. Campbell County exploded for three in the fifth and three in the sixth to pull away.
Senior center fielder Greg Vineyard and sophomore catcher Parker Schweitzer led the Camels at the plate. Schweitzer went 2 for 2 with one triple, one walk and one RBI.
The Camels stole seven bases. Junior right fielder Brayden Wells and junior Luke Barbian had two each. Barbian also scored two runs.
Senior Alex Brummett took the loss for the Cougars. He struck out seven in five innings and allowed five hits and three earned runs to go with two walks. Senior Joseph Ruwe pitched the sixth inning for Calvary Christian.
Campbell County travels to Beechwood (1-0) on Thursday for a 5 p.m. game. Calvary Christian takes on Bracken County (2-3) in the Gary Huhn Tournament at Noon in Covington.
Conner 11, Carroll County 1 (5 innings):
The Cougars arrived in Carrollton, but did not realize they arrived early with the game starting an hour later than expected. But they still opened the season with a win over the Panthers (1-3).
They scored four runs in the second inning and never looked back. Conner scored seven runs in the fourth inning to go up 11-1 and put the game away in the fifth inning.
“I’m really happy with our performance,” said Brad Arlinghaus, Conner Head Coach. “It starts with pitching and defense. Our guys came out and they swung the bats pretty well for opening day. I don’t care if your seniors or sophomores. You still have those opening day jitters. We were happy to play somebody other than ourselves. We came out and did well in all three phases.”
Junior Brody Mangold picked up the pitching win for Conner. He struck out nine, walked one, allowed just one earned run and limited the Panthers to a .125 (2 for 16) clip at the plate. Carroll County’s lone run came when junior pitcher Landon Isaacs hit a solo home run in the bottom of the second.
Conner did not commit any errors in the game. Carroll County had four.
The Cougars batted .320 (8 for 25) for the game. Senior shortstop Gage Testerman led the way going 2 for 3 with two doubles, one RBI and one run scored. Junior right fielder Jackson Bucks homered for Conner with junior designated hitter Luke Hubbard and junior center fielder Ayden Lohr recording doubles. Junior designated hitter Brayden Stidham went 2 for 3 with two RBI and one run scored.
“We were pretty much bonding as a team and having fun,” Testerman said of handling the hour delay. “We made an hour drive. We just knew we had business to do. We went out there to compete and made it happen.”
Bucks scored twice and drove in two with Lohr also driving in two. Senior left fielder Cody Crawford and senior third baseman Ethan Hite scored two runs each for the Cougars.
“Last year, we struggled with closing games out,” Arlinghaus said. “So it was nice to see them not just stop at 4-0 then 4-1. They came out and continued to put up runs and close the door on them before letting them creep back in.”
Conner plays host to Highlands on Wednesday. Game time is 5 p.m.
Ryle 9, Walton-Verona 6:
The Raiders earned their first win of the season with the home win. Both teams are 1-2 on the year.
Senior Josh Furtado (1-0) picked up the pitching win for Ryle throwing five innings. He struck out eight, walked four and allowed two hits and two earned runs. Senior Tyler Sickmeyer pitched the last two.
“We threw strikes,” said Joe Aylor, Ryle Head Coach. “I think that was the big thing just getting the ball over the plate and let our defense work. That’s usually something that allows us to win because that plays into our strength.”
Ryle batted .240 (6 for 25) at the plate as a team. Senor Brayden Stewart had a double and two walks. Sophomore Caleb Mann drove in three.
“We actually took very good approaches at the plate,” Aylor said. “We sort of battled a little bit more. A lot of our guys saw more pitches, less strikeouts. We took advantage of some situations of defensive miscues and walks.”
Ryle travels to St. Henry (2-0) on Wednesday for a 5 p.m. battle. Walton-Verona takes on Gallatin County at 5:30 p.m. then Trimble County at 7:30 p.m. on Saturday.
Other March 22 NKY Softball Scores:
Holy Cross 18, Bellevue 4 (5 innings)
Bishop Brossart 15, Ludlow 0 (3 innings)
Newport Central Catholic 11, Calvary Christian 7
Walton-Verona 6, Eminence 1
Beechwood 18, Lloyd Memorial 3
Other March 22 NKY Baseball Scores:
Grant County 13, Bellevue 3 (5 innings)
August 20, Newport 8 (5 innings)
St. Henry 13, Scott 3 (6 innings)
Ludlow 10, Villa Madonna 9
Holy Cross 19, Pendleton County 4 (3 innings)