The Burke County Post 21 senior legion softball team poses for a photo after its season-opening doubleheader at McDowell Post 56 on June 2. Pictured (from left to right) are players Maddy Hudson, Kayden Maines, Lydia Patton, Kayleigh Woody, Kyndal Morrison, Jolann Buff, Emma Fish, Harper Best, Whitley Strange, Lila Hudson, Marleigh Carswell, and Hayden Carlson. This year’s team also includes (not pictured) Finley Duvall, Maria Medrano, and Makenzie Powell and is coached by Mike Hasson (head coach), Leah Bostian, and Wesley Hasson.
Post 21 junior softball squad centerfielder Finley Duvall dives in the gap to make the catch for an out against Caldwell County Post 29 during Monday’s doubleheader at Patton High School.
Post 21 junior softball squad centerfielder Finley Duvall dives in the gap to make the catch for an out against Caldwell County Post 29 during Monday’s doubleheader at Patton High School.
The Burke County Post 21 American Legion Lady junior softball team settled for splits in two more doubleheaders recently, its third and fourth times doing so in as many outings this season.
Post 21 (4-4) lost to host Wilkes County Post 31 by a 13-4 score in the opener on June 5 before rebounding for an 11-3 victory in game two, with both scheduled five-inning contests trimmed to four innings by the run rule.
Post 21 then dropped its home opener to Caldwell County Post 29 at Patton High School on Monday, 11-0 in four innings, before holding on for an 8-7 win in the nightcap.
Post 21 led Wilkes 2-0 early in game one as Harper Best drove in two runs on a first-inning single, but the hosts struck for seven runs in the second and five in the third to put the game away.
Despite the loss, Post 21 outhit Wilkes by a 10-7 margin, led by catcher Jaiden Bame’s 3-for-3 outing that included a double.
Janiyah Benjamin (run, RBI) and Sophia Davis (double, walk, two runs) added two hits each, and other Post 21 offensive leaders were Best, SophiAnn Smith (double, run), Desirae Smith (single), and Abigail Roper (two walks), with Best (1 1/3 IP, 3 K) and SophiAnn Smith (1 2/3 IP, 2 K) also sharing pitching duties.
Post 21 then plated single runs in the first and second innings for a 2-0 lead before enjoying a huge seven-run third inning in game two.
Post 21 juniors pitcher SophiAnn Smith prepares to deliver to the plate against Caldwell on Monday.
JAMES LYNCH JR. / THE PAPER
Benjamin got things started with an RBI double in the first before Kelly Scales hit a solo home run an inning later. In the third, Fish smashed a three-run homer to left, Scales cleared the bases with a single, and Serenity Waycaster also supplied an RBI via a single.
Whitley Strange (4 IP, 5 H, 3 BB, 3 ER, 6 K) nabbed the win from the circle, and Scales (3 for 3, two runs, three RBIs) finished a triple shy of the cycle to pace the hitting attack.
Other Post 21 standouts in the win included Fish, Benjamin (3 for 3, double, two runs, RBI), Strange (walk, run), Best (single), Finley Duvall (2 for 3, double, two runs, RBI), Lily Thompson (single, two walks, two runs, SB), and Ava Hensley (walk, run, SB).
In the home opener to start this week, Post 21 allowed eight second-inning runs in game one as Caldwell pulled away. But the hosts again rebounded to move their record back to .500 as they seized an early 8-2 lead and survived a four-run Caldwell fifth inning.
A Smith double proved to be the hosts’ lone hit in the opener, and Smith (2 IP, 4 H, 2 K) and Paige Hennessee (2 IP, 2 H, 0 ER) split time in the circle, hurt by three errors committed by the hosts.
After allowing a pair of runs in the first in the nightcap, Post 21 unloaded for five runs in its half of the frame and tacked on three more in the second to cap its scoring.
Benjamin ran her hitting streak to six games as she led Post 21 with a 3-for-3 effort that included a double, two runs, and two RBIs.
Davis (walk, RBI, run, SB) and Smith (three RBIs) tacked on two hits apiece, and Scales (RBI, run), Waycaster (RBI, run), Duvall (walk, two runs), Hensley (walk, run), and Best each added base hits.
Best went the distance in earning the win, allowing six earned runs on eight hits and four walks while striking out five over her five innings.
The Post 21 junior squad next hosts McDowell Post 56 on June 15.
The Burke County Post 21 senior legion softball team poses for a photo after its season-opening doubleheader at McDowell Post 56 on June 2. Pictured (from left to right) are players Maddy Hudson, Kayden Maines, Lydia Patton, Kayleigh Woody, Kyndal Morrison, Jolann Buff, Emma Fish, Harper Best, Whitley Strange, Lila Hudson, Marleigh Carswell, and Hayden Carlson. This year’s team also includes (not pictured) Finley Duvall, Maria Medrano, and Makenzie Powell and is coached by Mike Hasson (head coach), Leah Bostian, and Wesley Hasson.
FOR THE PAPER
Sr. legion team blanked on road
The Post 21 senior legion softball squad (1-2) allowed host Hickory Post 48 to score multiple runs in each inning of a 17-0 loss at Lenoir-Rhyne University on Tuesday.
The teams played just one of their two scheduled games as the nightcap was rained out.
Post 21 did manage five hits, with catcher Jolann Buff leading the way as she reached base on a single and a walk.
Maria Medrano, Maddy Hudson, Kyndal Morrison, and Lydia Patton each added singles, with Kayden Maines (2 IP, 7 ER), Kayleigh Woody (2 IP, 5 ER), and Best (3 ER) each pitching.
Post 21 committed the game’s only error, and Macey Michael (3 for 3, HR, three runs, seven RBIs) led the hosts’ 12-hit attack, with Owen Lyall (5 IP, 6 K) earning the shutout victory from the circle.
Post 21 next hosts its senior legion opener on June 16 at 6 p.m. at PHS as Wilkes County Post 31 travels to Morganton.
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