The Huskies split four games at a varsity softball tournament held in Bend last week.
They beat Crook County 16-3 and then lost 13-6 to Scappoose Monday. Tuesday, they defeated Corbett 11-1 followed by an 11-4 loss to Madras.
The softball team holds a 4-4 record heading into league play, which was scheduled to begin at Sutherlin Tuesday. They will travel to Junction City Friday and then to Cottage Grove on Tuesday, April 11.
Around the league, Junction City moves into league with a 5-2 overall record, while Sisters is 3-3. Elmira is 1-3. Sutherlin and Cottage Grove have recorded no wins.
Across the state, the Huskies are third in the total number of runs scored, with 81. Only top-ranked South Umpqua, with 85, and sixth-ranked McLoughlin, with 96, have scored more this year. The Huskies are 16th in OSAA rankings.
Sweet Home 16, Crook County 3
“I feel like the girls came out strong against Crook County defensively, jumped on them early and continued to hold on throughout the game,” said Coach Karyn Hartsook.
The Huskies scored 10 runs in the first inning after three Huskies reached base on walks and Madi Barringer singled to score Sunhee Bitter to start the scoring.
Crook County scored three in the fourth inning, but the Huskies closed out the game with five runs in the fifth inning, winning under the 10-run rule.
At bat for the Huskies, Kylie Armstrong went 3-3 with two RBIs and two runs. Sydney Mauer went 2-3 with a run and three RBIs. Barringer went 2-3 with two runs and two RBIs. Each hit a double.
Btter had one hit with an RBI and two runs Sarita Zanona singled with two runs. Allison Miner singled with two runs. Makenna Melbye had a hit with a run and an RBI.
Torree Hawken and Marissa Kurtz each had two runs and an RBI. Ashtyn Walker had an RBI.
Zanona pitched four innings, giving up three hits, one earned run and a walk and struck out three. Walker pitched the final inning, striking out one batter.
Hailey Smith led Crook County at bat with a double.
Brooke Dalton pitched four innings for Crook County, giving up 10 hits, 12 earned runs and nine walks and striking out two. Smith pitched one inning in relief, giving up a run, walk and a hit and striking out one.
Sweet Home (10) 10 05x – 16 11 1
Crook County 0 00 30x – 3 3 4
Scappoose 13, Sweet Home 6
Scappoose scored a pair of runs to start the game off. The Huskies answered with one of their own when Barringer reached on an error by the third baseman, scoring Zanona. Mauer singled on a line drive to center field to score Ally Tow in the fourth inning to tie the game 2-2.
“We really stayed with them,” Hartsook said about the game which was better than it looked overall on paper. “The game wasn’t out of our reach at any point. We just didn’t put our hits together. We had a lot of opportunities. The girls played well.”
Scappoose took off in the fifth inning, scoring nine runs. Tow answered with a home run that also scored Barringer, but it wasn’t enough as both teams scored another pair of runs in the final inning.
Tow and Mauer led hitting for the Huskies with two each, including a triple, a home run and three RBIs for Tow. Collecting one hit each were Bitter, Zanona, Allison Miner and Walker.
Walker pitched four innings, giving up 10 hits, seven earned runs and no walks. She struck out two.
Pitching in relief in the fifth inning, Zanona gave up three earned runs, two hits and four walks. Tow finished the game, giving up three hits and striking out one.
Scappoose collected 15 hits, including six doubles and a home run. Pitching, Scapoose gave up two earned runs, seven hits and four walks, striking out eight Huskies.
Scappoose 200 090 2 – 13 15 3
Sweet Home 100 120 2 – 6 8 7
Sweet Home 11, Corbett 1
“Again, we jumped out and got on the hitting,” Hartsook said.
The girls were more consistent defensively and committed fewer errors, she said, and she is proud of the effort each Husky has been making to continue improving.
Sweet Home took a 2-run lead in the first inning when Barringer hit a home run that scored Zanona.
Corbett scored its only run in the first inning. The Huskies added two more in the fifth inning and seven more in the sixth to win the game under the 10-run rule.
At bat Tow hit a home run, with four RBIs and a run. Barringer had two runs and two RBIs.
Zanona and Miner each had two hits, Zanona with three runs and Miner with two runs and two RBIs.
Bitter singled, with two runs and an RBI. Kylie Armstrong doubled with one run. Kirdy Koehne had one run.
Walker pitched a complete game, giving up two hits and a run.
At bat for Corbett, Daphne Scott doubled and scored a run. Molly Stratton had one hit.
Pitching, Kara Morits gave up two earned runs, eight hits and one walk. She struck out two batters.
Sweet Home 200 027 – 11 8 0
Corbett 100 000 – 1 2 7
Madras 11, Sweet Home 4
The lead went back and forth for five innings before Madras scored six runs to secure their victory over the Huskies.
“We just didn’t perform,” Hartsook said. “It probably was not our best performance hitting-wise.”
Freshman Jiana Smith-Francis threw slow pitches that the Huskies struggled to hit, Hartsook said. Madras came out playing well and probably had one of its best games.
“We have to settle in with our pitching and make sure we’re being consistent with pitch placement,” Hartsook said. That’s something the team is working on and something that is improving.
She noted that two of the team’s pitchers aren’t normally pitchers, and the third is a freshmen in her first season of varsity softball and putting in the effort she needs to in order to improve.
The Huskies took a 2-0 lead in the top of the second inning. Two singled to center field, and Barringer scored on the throw. Later, Hawken singled to center, and Walker scored on the throw.
Madras answered with two runs, but the Huskies took the lead again when Tow reached on an error by the third baseman and Miner scored. Madras had an answer again, tying the game 3-3 in the bottom of the third.
Madras held the Huskies in the fourth inning and scored two more runs to take a 5-3 lead. The Huskies scored once more. Tow advanced to third base on a wild pitch and then scored on a sacrifice by Mauer.
At bat, Bitter, Tow and Hawken each had two hits, with Tow hitting a double, scoring a run and collecting two RBIs.
Zanona, Miner, Walker and Armstrong each had a single, Miner with a double.
Walker pitched 5 2/3 innings, giving up 10 hits, four earned runs and four walks with six strikeouts. Zanona finished the game, giving up one hit and no unearned runs.
For Madras, Kaliyah Iverson had three hits, with two doubles, three RBIs and a run.
Pitching Smith-Francis, gave up 10 hits, one earned run and no walks with two strikeouts.
Sweet Home 021 010 0 – 4 10 4
Madras 021 206 x – 11 11 2