Lady Cats score 20 runs against Wellsville, but come up short in doubleheader

Louisburg freshman Sabra Brueggen lines a base hit to the outfield Thursday against Wellsville at Lewis-Young Park.

The Louisburg softball team was hoping to build on its first two wins of the season last week as the Lady Cats hosted Spring Hill and Wellsville in a pair of doubleheaders.

Unfortunately for the Lady Cats, neither of them went as well as they would have hoped.

Following a pair of losses to Spring Hill last Tuesday, Louisburg’s offense came to life against Wellsville, but lost a 19-13 extra inning affair in the first game and then lost 18-7 in the nightcap for its fourth straight loss Thursday at Lewis-Young Park.

Although the Lady Cats were able to plate 20 run in the two games, they struggled in the field with eight errors in each game.

“Our bats are hot right now,” Louisburg coach Nick Chapman said. “We are hitting the ball well and we are executing situations when needed. We just beat ourselves on defense. We put ourselves in position to win the first game and we didn’t finish it. I was very proud of how we responded going into the bottom of the 6th and 7th innings needing to score runs to give us a chance and we did. 

“Wellsville was a great offensive team but we shouldn’t have to score that many runs to try to win games. I’m glad we can though. We will get back to work and look to put a better product on the defensive side of the ball and continue our hot bats.”

In the opener, the Lady Cats jumped out to a 4-2 lead in the bottom of the fifth inning, only to see Wellsville respond with seven runs in the sixth. Louisburg answered right back with seven runs of its own in the bottom of the frame.

Wellsville scored three more in the seventh to take a one run lead, but Sabra Brueggen led the bottom of the seventh off with a double and scored on a single from Mia Wilson to force extra innings.

The Eagles took the momentum right back as they scored seven runs in the eighth and the Lady Cats weren’t able to rally this time around.

Sophomore Izzy Moreland led the Lady Cats with three hits, including double and 3 RBIs. Wilson also finished with three hits and 2 RBIs, while Brueggen had three hits, a double and an RBI.

Ashley Moreau, Addy Stohs, Megan Quinn and Brynley Bauer each finished with two hits, including double from Quinn and Bauer. Moreau, Quinn and Rylee Hickey had 2 RBIs each.

In the nightcap, one big inning by Wellsville put the Lady Cats in a hole they couldn’t get out of.

Louisburg (2-4) trailed 8-7 going into the fifth when the Eagles exploded for a 10-run inning to put the game out of reach.

Six players finished with a multi-hit game for Louisburg. Sophomore Jenna Cauthon had two hits, including a double and 2 RBIs, while Stohs also had an RBI double.

Moreau, Wilson and Moreland each finished with a pair of hits and a run batted in, while Brueggen had a pair of singles and two runs scored. Quinn also finished with two singles.

Louisburg will try and bounce back today when it travels to Bonner Springs for a doubleheader. First pitch is set for 4:30 p.m.

Spring Hill hands Louisburg two losses

Louisburg hosted Spring Hill last Tuesday at Lewis-Young Park and the Broncos are considered to be the league favorite. 

The Broncos showed early and often why they are among the best in the Frontier League.

Spring Hill handed Louisburg 13-1 and 16-4 losses in what was its first setback of the season.

Louisburg took a 1-0 lead in the fourth inning of the first game after freshman Mackenzie Rooney walked and later scored on an error. In the fourth, Spring Hill broke the game open with a 13-run inning.

“Spring Hill is a really good team,” Chapman said. “They are going to be a tough one to beat in the league and 5A. They took advantage of our mistakes. I thought in both games, we played solid softball for 3-4 innings in each game. We were up 1-0 going into the top of the 4th and Spring Hill was frustrated. They started hitting the ball well and we let that get to us. Same thing in the second game. 

“We allowed some easy runs but we stayed competitive at the plate and frustrated them on the mound. We just couldn’t hold off their bats and make the plays we needed to. We have to learn that we are going to see teams that are going to hit the ball well, but that doesn’t mean we can’t play even better defense.”

In the nightcap, Spring Hill jumped out to a 6-0 lead in the third and scored 10 more runs in the next two innings.

Brueggen led the Louisburg offense with a pair of hits and two RBIs, while Wilson had an RBI double. Rooney finished with an RBI triple and Stohs added a double and scored a run.

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