Quinn no-hits Ottawa to give Louisburg first win of season

OTTAWA — Coming off a close loss to Ottawa in the first game of Thursday’s doubleheader, Louisburg needed a spark.

The Wildcats got one in Megan Quinn.

Quinn pitched a complete-game no-hitter as the Wildcats cruised to a 10-0 win over the Cyclones in the nightcap at Orlis Cox Sports Complex in Ottawa. The Wildcats took out their frustration after an 11-10 loss in the opener.

It was also the first win of the season for Louisburg and it couldn’t have come at a better time.

Although Quinn worked around a couple of errors and a pair walks, the Louisburg senior also got some big plays from her defense to go along with her four strikeouts. Senior Jenna Cauthon ran down a ball in foul territory and junior Katie McKain made a diving catch in the outfield to help the cause.

“Megan came in and threw lights out,” Louisburg coach Nick Chapman said. “Her and Rylee (Hickey) worked their hitters and found ways to get them to roll over and pop up. Our defense play fantastic behind her. All over the field, we made the fundamental plays but we also made some big time special plays. Jenna had a catch in foul territory where she had to haul to go get. Katie had a sweet diving play in the outfield that came at a crucial moment in the game where we stalled at the plate for an inning and needed a big defensive stop. 

“Right after that is when we had our big inning at the plate. It set the precedent for how our defense should play this season. We made a couple mistakes and that’s going to happen but we never let that get us down. The whole team was in it for each other to go get this one.”

Louisburg got out to a 3-0 lead after three innings, but the Wildcats broke the game open with a 5-run sixth inning. 

Senior Ashley Moreau had a two-run single to score Brinley Bauer and Shyloh Waite. Quinn then helped out her own cause with a 2-run double and later scored on a sacrifice by Addy Stohs.

The Wildcats added two more runs in seventh as Moreau recorded an RBI double and Rylee Hickey had an RBI single to secure the win.

Moreau, Quinn and Cauthon each finished with two hits and Moreau had a team-high 3 RBIs. Quinn and senior Izzy Moreland each finished with 2 RBIs.

Offense wasn’t a problem for Louisburg in the first game, either. The Wildcats pounded out 10 runs on 15 hits in the 1-run loss.

Quinn finished with a pair of doubles to go along with 2 RBIs, while Cauthon drove home a team-high three runs. Hickey led the Wildcats with three hits and an RBI.

Moreau, Cauthon, Moreland and Waite all had two hits as well, while McKain had a double. Stohs added an RBI single to the cause.

“We had a pretty solid night at the plate overall,” Chapman said. “All 10 girls found a way on base. We had to make some adjustments to the first pitcher who slowed it down on us, compared to what we saw on Monday against Frontenac. I’m proud of how we are hitting once we figure out the pitcher. Our biggest improvement is figuring her out sooner and not letting up once we do have her figured out. We can be a very dangerous offense as we keep getting better.”

Louisburg was cruising along early as it took a 4-1 lead into the fourth inning, but the Wildcats had six errors as Ottawa scored 10 runs in the next three innings.

The Wildcats made it interesting with three runs in the top of the seventh thanks to RBI singles from Moreau and Cauthon, but could get no closer.

“We just had one inning where we had a let down and that carried into the rest of the game and we came up short,” Chapman said. “However, I’m so proud of the girls with how they responded to that. They came out and played some great softball in the second game. This is the first time we have beaten Ottawa since the year we went to state five years ago when I was an assistant. 

“Especially after almost upsetting them last year in the regional game, it feels good and the girls were excited to get that. This was the game we talked about most of the week. Now we have some momentum going into this next week where we play three games, including Spring Hill who always has a good program.”

Louisburg will try for back-to-back wins tonight as the Wildcats host Baldwin in a one-game makeup contest. First pitch is set for 6 p.m. at Lewis-Young Park.

Wildcats fall in opener to Frontenac

It was challenging season opener for Louisburg as it hosted Frontenac last Monday as the Raiders have been in the Class 3A state champions twice in the last five years.

Errors hurt Louisburg as Frontenac scored 10 runs in the final three innings to take an 11-0 win over the Wildcats in the first game of the doubleheader.

Louisburg had a lead in the second game, but rain suspended play as the two teams hope to complete it later this season.

Senior Izzy Moreland started the first game for Louisburg and kept the Raider batters off balance through three innings, but Frontenac recorded four runs in the fourth to pull away. Moreland finished the game with seven strikeouts in 5 2/3 innings and gave up just four earned runs.

“This was a good team and we held them to 1 run for about 3 or 4 innings in the first game,” Chapman said. “We were making plays behind Izzy. They have a stud pitcher who is probably going to be the best pitcher we see this season. She was fast and had some good spin on her. We had a tough time against her. I thought we played well minus our last inning where we fell a part with errors.”