Wildcats medal three, finish second at Ottawa Invite
The Louisburg golf team of (from left) Sam Frederick, Derek Fredereick, Ayden McKain, Garrison Bloustine, Cole Mynsted and Matt Stohs finished second Monday at the Ottawa Invitational.
OTTAWA — In what was a rain-soaked course, the Louisburg golf team had its fair share of challenges, but that didn’t seem to bother the Wildcats.
Louisburg had three golfers finish in the top 10 and the Wildcats finished second in the team standings Monday at the Ottawa Invitational.
“The varsity golfers played amazing,” Louisburg coach Brian Burns said. “I have not had four score in the 320’s for many years and they still didn’t win the meet. Of course, we enjoyed medaling as a team and playing well.”
The Wildcats shot a 323 and finished just two strokes behind Ottawa in a battle for the team title on the Great Life Fitness and Golf Course.
Sophomore Derek Frederick, senior Cole Mynsted and junior Sam Frederick also left with some extra hardware.
Derek Frederick medaled fourth overall as he shot a 79. Mynsted and Sam Frederick each carded an 80 as they took fifth and sixth, respectively. Junior Garrison Bloustine shot a personal best 84 to finish 11th and one spot out of the medals.
“It was great to see one of my fifth and sixth spots in Garrison contribute to our score,” Burns said. “It was the first time he broke 90. Also, a big congrats goes out to Derek, Sam and Cole for medaling in the top 10.”
Sophomore Matt Stohs recorded an 88 to finish fifth on the team and 16th overall in the 10-team meet. Senior Ayden McKain carded a 99 to take 28th overall and round out the Wildcat lineup.
Louisburg is back in action Tuesday when it travel to Garnett for the Anderson County Invitational.
Stohs records league title in shortened tournament
Golfers were dodging rain drops last Thursday at the Frontier League Invitational, before the tournament was eventually called halfway through.
Luckily for the Wildcats, they didn’t let the wet weather bother them.
Matt Stohs won the league title at Sycamore Ridge Golf Course in Spring Hill and he wasn’t the only medalist. Senior Cole Mynsted and junior Sam Frederick also ended with individual medals.
As a team, the Wildcats finished second in the league standings.
Wildcat swim qualifies third relay for state
Louisburg junior Janie Harth, along with Sabra Brueggen, Cadence Weichert and Ella Bockelman, qualified their third relay for state Saturday at Blue Valley Southwest.
OVERLAND PARK — Although the program is still relatively new, the Louisburg girls swim team made school history Saturday at Blue Valley Southwest.
The Wildcats qualified their third relay for state as the 200 freestyle relay team of Sabra Brueggen, Cadence Weichert, Janie Harth and Ella Bockelman had a state qualifying time of 1 minute and 51.75 seconds and took fourth overall. It is the first time in school history that they will send all three relays to the state meet.
As a team, Osawatomie-Paola-Louisburg-Spring Hill finished fifth overall with 131 points in the 9-team meet.
Brueggen led Louisburg with a pair of third place medals. The Wildcat junior took third in the 50 freestyle in 26.02 seconds and third in the 100 freestyle in 56.51 seconds.
Harth, another junior, also earned a medal as she took third in the 100 backstroke in 1:13.
Harth, Weichert, Brueggen and Spring Hill’s Camden Strickland took third in the 200 medley relay in 2:06.94. Weichert also took sixth in the 200 individual medley in 2:45, while Spring Hill’s Maryanne McNally medaled third in the 500 freestyle.
As a team, the program also recorded 27 personal best times.
The Miami County team also had a lot of success on April 23 at the Topeka West Invitational.
They recorded 25 new personal best times and finished second overall with 301.5 points in the 10-team meet.
Brueggen won a pair of gold medals and also earned a state qualification time in the 100 backstroke as she won in 1:02.38. The Louisburg junior also captured the 50 freestyle title in 26.21 seconds.
Harth went on to finish third in the 100 freestyle in a season-best time of 1:02.16 and also took fifth in the 100 backstroke. Weichert was fourth in the 100 butterfly with a personal best time of 1:12.
Brueggen, Harth, Weichert and Bockelman also helped the 200 freestyle relay to a fourth place finish in 1:53.69.
Osawatomie-Paola-Louisburg-Spring Hill returns home today as the team competes in its home invitational. Events begin at 4 p.m. at the OZone in Osawatomie.
Week 6 Athlete of the Week: Jaden Bentz
Here is the Louisburg Sports Zone Athlete of the Week for week six of the spring sports season, sponsored by Edward Jones-Craig Holtzen.
JADEN BENTZ, JUNIOR, GIRLS SOCCER
Defense has been the name of the game for the Louisburg girls soccer team as of late and Jaden Bentz has been a big part of the Wildcats’ success. Following a 3-0 shutout of Ottawa on Thursday, the Wildcats had won four of their last five matches — all by shutout. Bentz has been assigned to the team’s best player and has made life difficult for the opposition.
“Normally these awards go to offensive players, and that is understandable, but Jaden is an absolute shut down defender,” Louisburg coach Ben York said. “She is one of the main reasons we have the shutouts we have this year.”
The Wildcats currently have an 8-3-1 record on the season, and that lone tie was a 0-0 result. Louisburg had gone five straight games without giving a goal and Bentz was an active part in that. Louisburg currently has six shutouts on the season.
The athlete of the week award is announced every Wednesday morning during the spring season and the winner is selected by Louisburg Sports Zone with the help of nominations from coaches.
Louisburg track thrives at Spring Hill Invitational
Louisburg junior Cooper Wingfield won the pole vault Monday at the Spring Hill Invitational after he cleared 14 feet.
On what was a rare Monday meet, the Louisburg track and field teams put together another strong performance on the road.
The Wildcat boys won the Spring Hill Invitational with 70 points, while the girls finished runner-up with 59 points. Spring Hill captured the girls title with 102.5 points.
“The meet gave us a chance to find out where we are and spotlighted what work is needed,” Louisburg boys coach Andy Wright said. “This is the time of year where you have to determine if you are going to keep getting better or are happy where you are at, and we want to keep getting better.”
The Louisburg boys won six events on the day, including four on the track.
Relays were a big success for the Wildcats and it started with the 4×100-meter relay. The team of Josiah McCaskill, Gavin Lohse, Gage Feldkamp and Caleb Feldkamp won with a time of 44.86 seconds.
The 4×400 team of Aidan Meyer, Emmett White, Blaise Vohs and Hunter Heinrich also took gold in 3:37.10. Blaise Vohs, Myles Vohs, Colton Blue and Jerynce Brings Plenty were runner-up in the 4×800 relay in 8:48.
Louisburg’s Colton Blue hands the baton off to Myles Vohs during a leg of the 4×800 relay Monday at the Spring Hill Invite.
Senior Noah Cotter had a big day in the distance races as he won both the 1,600- and 3,200-meter runs. Cotter ran a time of 4:55 in the 1,600 and a 10:46 in the 3,200.
Sophomore Blaise Vohs made it a Louisburg sweep in the distance races as he won the 800 run in 2:07.94.
In the field events, junior Cooper Wingfield took home the pole vault title as he cleared 14 feet to win the competition by more than three feet.
Senior Ben O’Bryan won the discus crown with a toss of 141-2. He also took fourth in the shot put at 45-8 and senior Jaymes Melton was fifth at 44-9.
Junior Gavin Lohse had his best performance of the season in the long jump as he took runner-up with mark of 22-1.5. He was also second the 100 dash in 11.75 seconds.
Also in the field events, the Wildcats got points from Titus Kleveter in the pole vault, (fifth, 8-0) and Tasen Ellison in the javelin (fifth, 142-3).
On the track, the Wildcats scored more points in the sprints. Caleb Feldkamp was second in the 200 dash in 23.97 seconds, while Hunter Heinrich was fourth in 24.51 and Emmett White was fifth in 24.66.
Heinrich and White also scored points in the 400 dash as Heinrich was fourth in 53.40 and White was fifth at 53.42.
Louisburg sophomore Suzanna Dansel leans at the finish to win the 100-meter dash Monday at the Spring Hill Invite.
On the girls side, the Lady Cats captured eight golds on the day and it started in the sprints with a pair of sophomores.
Suzanna Dansel won the 100 dash in 13.67 seconds, while Kendall Crossley took first in the 200 dash in 28.47 seconds. Crossley also took fifth in the 400 dash in 1:06.
The 4×100 team of Crossley, Dansel, Addi Mallett and Emma Vohs also struck gold as they won going away in 51.77 seconds.
Senior Maddy Rhamy dominated the distance events. Rhamy won the 1,600-meter run in 6:02 and also took first in the 3,200 run in 12:48.
Louisburg senior Maddy Rhamy takes the handoff from Erin Apple in the 4×800 relay Monday in Spring Hill. Rhamy won three events on the day.
Rhamy, along with Emma Vohs, Adelyn Moore and Erin Apple, won the 4×800 relay in 11:06. Moore also went on to take fourth in the 800 run in 2:41, while Vohs, Presley Yows, Moore and Crossley took third in the 4×400 in 4:30.
The Louisburg girls also won a pair of field events. Senior Maddy Carpenter-Ross tied her school-record mark of 11-7 in the pole vault to take first.
Junior Hanna Veres also had her best performance of the season in the triple jump as she took gold with a mark of 32-6.
Senior Katie Elpers scored points in the javelin for the Wildcats with a throw of 120-10, which was good for third. Sophomore McKenna Lohse recorded a toss of 36-6 in the shot put to finish fourth overall.
Louisburg senior Lola Edwards beats a defender to the ball during a match earlier this season.
OTTAWA — The injury bug has caught up with the Louisburg girls soccer team as the Wildcats currently have several players dealing with bumps and bruises, which isn’t ideal for a team that isn’t very deep.
Despite that, Louisburg has won four of its last five matches and one of those came Tuesday on the road as the Wildcats shutout Ottawa, 3-0.
It wasn’t the prettiest of performances according to head coach Ben York, but he was pleased to see his team battle through some adversity.
“We played a little uninspired at times, but I don’t want to take away from the win as they are all important this time of year,” York said. “We probably had 80 percent of possession but we didn’t finish a lot of chances.
“We are battling through some stuff physically and we aren’t really deep. We had some girls that came in the game that gave us some good minutes. Every team has stuff going on at this point in the year, but we want to be trending upward toward the end of the season and this win helped with that.”
Louisburg got on the board early as senior Lexi Hampton put the Wildcats up 1-0 in the first half. Junior Baileigh Johnson followed with another goal and the Wildcats led 2-0 at halftime.
Junior Rowan Yows sealed the win in the second half with her first goal of the match and the Wildcats improved their record to 8-2-1 on the season, which is the best on the East side of Class 4-1A.
“We had a ton of shots,” York said. “Ottawa just packed it in and made it hard for us to score at times. We just tried to go through the defense instead of taking some shots from distance. We need to be more patient, but it is tough when the defense just packs it in on you.”
Louisburg’s defense played well as goalie Macy Lemke earned the clean sheet, while senior Hailey Sword was active in the back to lead the Wildcat defense.
The Wildcats will try and make it two straight wins tonight as they host Eudora in a Frontier League match. Start time is set for 6 p.m. at Wildcat Stadium.
“Definitely not disappointed with this win, but I want to see us on the uptick and accelerating toward the end of the season,” York said. “Eudora is going to be a competitive game for us, we have to come to play.”
Wildcats tie Augusta, roll Chanute
Last week had its ups and downs for Louisburg, but after it all, the Wildcats avoided the loss column.
Louisburg earned a 0-0 tie against Augusta last Friday in Emporia, but recorded a 9-0 victory at Chanute on April 16.
Against Chanute, Baileigh Johnson, Lexi Hampton and Rowan Yows each scored two goals. Mena Fercho also found the back of the net, while Faith Sewell and Lila Edwards each scored their first varsity goal.
“It was really good,” York said. “One of the things I have been about, is we really share the load on who gets the scoring. How we approach the game is, if we are doing it properly, is about being unselfish and kids are just as interested in assists as goals. We got Macy some time outside of the goal and that was cool too.”
The Wildcats battled injuries against Augusta as Hampton, Yows and Fercho all had to leave the match at one time, but neither team could score in regulation or the two overtimes periods.
“We were the better skilled team and they were more disciplined and physical,” York said of Augusta. There was a lot of pulling and grabbing and that wore us down pretty good. We weren’t at full strength. Hailey played a really good game in the back and Macy made some really good saves too that kept the game scoreless.”
Week 5 Athlete of the Week: Maddy Carpenter-Ross
Here is the Louisburg Sports Zone Athlete of the Week for week five of the spring sports season, sponsored by Landmark National Bank.
MADDY CARPENTER-ROSS, SENIOR, TRACK AND FIELD
Louisburg senior Maddy Carpenter-Ross put her name in the Wildcat track history book last week at the Louisburg Invitational. Carpenter-Ross, the defending state champion in the pole vault, won the event at her home meet by setting a new school record at 11 feet, 7 inches. She broke the old mark of 11-6 that was set by Isabelle Holtzen in 2018.
It has been a dominating season so far for Carpenter-Ross as she won the pole vault gold in all five of her meets this season, including clearing 11-7 at her home meet and again Monday at the Spring Hill Invitational.
The athlete of the week award is announced every Wednesday morning during the spring season and the winner is selected by Louisburg Sports Zone with the help of nominations from coaches.
Wildcat boys cruise to Louisburg Invitational title
Louisburg junior Gavin Lohse won three events Thursday at the Louisburg Invitational, including the long jump.
It was a dominating performance for the Louisburg boys track and field team Thursday, and the Wildcats got to do it in front of their home crowd.
The Wildcats ran away with the Louisburg Invitational title as they racked up 225 points. Wellsville was second in the 7-team meet with 131.
Louisburg won 11 of the 18 events on the day and had 23 top three finishes. The Wildcats certainly didn’t let gloomy weather stop them from having success.
Junior Gavin Lohse had a big day for the Wildcats as he won three events, including two individual. Lohse captured the long jump title with a leap of 20 feet, 10 inches.
Then he moved over to the track as he won the 100-meter dash in 11.49 seconds. Louisburg also won all three relays as the 4×100 team of Lohse, Josiah McCaskill, Gage Feldkamp and Caleb Feldkamp took gold in 44.9 seconds.
The success continued in the 4×800 relay as Blaise Vohs, Colton Blue, Myles Vohs and Jerynce Brings Plenty took first in 8:55. The 4×400 relay of Aidan Meyer, Emmett White, Blaise Vohs and Hunter Heinrich won the 4×400 in 3:40.
Louisburg senior Noah Cotter sprints to the finish in the 3,200-meter run Thursday.
The Wildcats dominated the distance races as Noah Cotter won the 3,200-meter run in 11:13, while Brings Plenty took first in the 1,600 run in 4:52. Blaise Vohs took second in the 800 run in 2:07.
Brings Plenty also went on to take second in the 3,200 run in 11:14, while Cotter was third in the 1,600 in 4:59. Truman Ellison was third in the 3,200 in 11:18 and also was sixth in the 1,600 in 5:29. Freshman Levi Cotter was fifth in the 1,600 in 5:26.
In the sprints, Caleb Feldkamp and Gage Feldkamp took first and second, respectively, in the 200 dash. Caleb won in 23.44 and Gage was second at 23.58. Gage also took third in the 100 dash in 11.64.
White took the top spot in the 400-meter dash in 52.78 seconds, while Heinrich (54.64) and Blue (54.88) took second and third, respectively. Meyer was sixth at 55.05.
Also on the track, junior Jay McCaskill took the runner-up spot in the 300-meter hurdles in 45.42. Grant Cannon was fourth at 47.44. Josiah McCaskill was sixth in the 100 dash in 11.94.
Louisburg junior Jay McCaskill clears a hurdle Thursday at the Louisburg Invitational.
Senior Ben O’Bryan earned a gold medal in the field events as he won the discus with a throw of 150-9.
Evan McKitrick also earned first place honors as he won the triple jump with a mark of 39-4 and Tasen Ellison was fourth at 35-9. McKitrick also went on to take third in the jump at 5-6 and Ellison was sixth at 5-2.
Senior Wyatt Holland finished third in the long jump with a mark of 19-4 and junior Myles Vohs was right behind him in fourth at 18-11.
Junior Jacob Brown finished runner-up in the pole vault as he cleared a personal best of 13 feet.
Senior Jaymes Melton took third in a tough shot put competition with a throw of 44-9.5, while O’Bryan was fifth at 43-10.5.
The Wildcats also had three score points in the javelin as Ellison took fourth at 143-5. Miles Meek (135-4) and Brayden Yoder (128-0) were fifth and sixth, respectively.
Other results are:
100 dash: Russell Wiseman, 8th, 12.13; Logan Henry, 10th, 12.23
800 run: Levi Cotter, 8th, 2:23
1,600 run: Spencer Mattison, 7th, 5:33
Triple Jump: Brock McEwen, 9th, 31-5
Discus: Johnny Hendrickson, 8th, 108-10; Miles Meek, 11th, 105-9; Nathan Capuro, 17th, 97-8; Jaymes Melton, 21st, 93-2
Carpenter-Ross breaks school record; Lady Cats win home meet
Louisburg senior Maddy Carpenter-Ross won the pole vault Thursday at the Louisburg Invitational. Carpenter-Ross broke the school record with a new mark of 11-7.
It might not have been the best weather for a track meet, but that didn’t stop the Louisburg girls from putting together a strong performance in their lone home event this season.
Louisburg won eight events, was runner-up in three others and broke a school record in the process. That all added up to a first place team finish Thursday at the Louisburg Invitational.
The Lady Cats racked up 125.5 points and edged Prairie View (118) for the title at the 7-team meet.
“This has been a challenging season to say the least,” Louisburg coach John Reece said. “Weather has been an issue more than not, but the girls continue to compete well. It is always nice to win our home meet and this year was no exception as the team put together a strong performance.”
One of those performances came thanks to Maddy Carpenter-Ross. The Louisburg senior didn’t let the cool weather stop her from putting her name in the Wildcat record books.
Carpenter-Ross won the pole vault with a clearance of 11 feet, 7 inches and broke the school record. The old record of 11-6 was set by Isabelle Holtzen in 2018.
“Maddy breaking the school pole vault record was awesome,” Reece said. “We hope to see her continue her strong performances and finish out her high school track career strong.”
Louisburg sophomore Kendall Crossley leans at the finish Thursday to help the 4×400 team to a first place finish.
The Lady Cats also won a pair of other field events and it started in the javelin. Senior Katie Elpers won the event with a throw of 121-10, which was just two inches away from her personal best.
In the shot put, sophomore McKenna Lohse had her best throw of the season as she recorded a toss of 36-5.5 to take gold.
On the track, senior Maddy Rhamy took first place in the 3,200-meter run in 13 minutes and 7 seconds. In the sprints, sophomore Kendall Crossley was first in the 400 dash in 1:06.42, and later took second in the 200 dash in 28.03 seconds.
Louisburg also had a pair of relays take first as the 4×800 team of Adelyn Moore, Emma Vohs, Erin Apple and Rhamy won in 11:14.
The Lady Cats closed the meet out in style as the 4×400 team of Vohs, Moore, Presley Yows and Crossley won in 4:30.13. Crossley leaned at the finish to edge second place Prairie View.
Freshman Caroline Apple also took gold in the 300-meter hurdles in 51.88 seconds. She was fourth in the 100 hurdles in 18.04 seconds, while senior Kate Frederick was fifth in both races.
Louisburg’s Kate Frederick (left) and Caroline Apple each scored points in the hurdles Thursday during Louisburg Invitational.
Moore finished runner-up in the 800 run in 2:44, while Rhamy was fourth in the 1,600 run in 6:19. Also on the track, sophomore Addi Mallett took fifth in the 200 dash in 28.86 and Yows was sixth in the 400 dash in 1:09.
In the field events, Hanna Veres took the runner-up spot in the triple jump with a mark of 30-11.
Lohse also scored points in the discus with a throw of 88-11 to take fourth, while Caroline Apple was sixth in the high jump at 4-6. Freshman Kinley Scott was fifth in the shot put at 32-10.5.
Wildcats fall in pitcher’s dual to Blue Valley West
Louisburg junior Addy Stohs gets a base hit during a game earlier this season. Louisburg dropped a close game to Blue Valley West on Thursday, 2-1.
OVERLAND PARK — Louisburg put together its best defensive performance of the season Thursday at Blue Valley West.
The Wildcats just didn’t have quite enough offense to leave with a win over the Class 6A opponent. Blue Valley West scored two runs in the third inning, which proved to be the difference in a 2-1 loss Thursday for the Wildcats.
“I thought Blue Valley West was our best defensive game,” Louisburg coach Nick Chapman said. “We play really well in the field. We made our fundamental plays, even through the windy conditions. They had a couple little dink hits that the wind got a hold of and put the ball out of our reach that they scored two runs off of. We played as clean as we possibly could. We just didn’t capitalize on a couple opportunities at the plate.”
Louisburg senior Izzy Moreland started the game for the Wildcats as she pitched a complete game. Moreland worked around six hits and gave up the two runs and struck out two.
The Wildcats (8-7) took a 1-0 lead with a run in the top of the third. Senior Jenna Cauthon singled home Katelyn Smart to give their team an early advantage.
Blue Valley West answered right back with two in the bottom of the third inning on a pair of singles and a sacrifice bunt.
Ashley Moreau, Megan Quinn and Brynley Bauer also had hits for the Wildcats.
Despite the loss, the Wildcats have already eclipsed their win total from last season and are looking to make another run as the postseason approaches.
“We are getting better every game and slowly starting to play our best softball,” Chapman said. “When we can put both offense and defense together in the same game, we are going to be very dangerous going into regionals.”
Louisburg is back in action this Tuesday when the Wildcats host Fort Scott in a doubleheader. First pitch is set for 4:30 p.m.
Wildcats earn split at McPherson quad
Louisburg made the long jaunt to McPherson for a pair of games in the 4-team tournament last Tuesday and left with a 1-1 record.
The Wildcats fell to McPherson, one of the top teams in Class 4A , 21-5, but rebounded with a 5-2 victory over Emporia.
“I thought we responded well against Emporia,” Chapman said. “The top of our lineup is consistently finding ways on base and hitting the ball hard.”
In the victory over Emporia, Louisburg jumped out to a 3-1 lead early and that would be all the run support Megan Quinn would need. The Louisburg senior pitched a complete game, allowed two runs and struck out six.
Seniors Rylee Hickey and Jenna Cauthon led the way with a pair of hits, while Hickey had a double and an RBI. Izzy Moreland added an RBI double, while Ashley Moreau tripled and scored two runs. Quinn also recorded an RBI single to help her cause.
Against McPherson, the Wildcats jumped out to a 3-0 lead over the Bullpups in the top of the first. McPherson responded with nine runs in the bottom of the first to get out to a big lead.
Moreau led the Wildcat bats with two hits, while Moreland had a 2-run single. Quinn added an RBI single as well.
“I thought it was a good night for us,” Chapman said. “It was a long bus ride for us. The girls showed up ready to play and we jumped out to a quick lead in the first inning. We were locked in at the plate for most of the game, still swinging pretty well. McPherson is a solid team. They responded with a big first inning and we stayed locked in at the plate and tried to chip away at their lead.
“We just didn’t play clean in the field and against a good team like that we have to play as clean as possible and we didn’t. Hats off to them. They are a good team.”
Wildcats start new winning streak with sweep of Lansing
Louisburg senior Nathaniel Lamm celebrates with his teammates after one of his two home runs last week against Piper. Louisburg also earned a sweep Friday at Lansing.
LANSING — After Louisburg saw its 9-game winning streak snapped early last week, the Wildcats didn’t waste much time starting a new one.
Louisburg went on the road for a doubleheader against Lansing, the Wildcats’ second Class 5A opponent of the week, and left with a pair of close victories.
The Wildcats earned a 5-4 victory in the opener Friday. They needed extra innings against the Lions in the nightcap as they earned another 5-4 win.
Louisburg is now 13-2 on the season and currently has the second best record on the east side of Class 4A.
“Going on the road and winning two games is tough,” Louisburg coach Kade Larson said. “The guys competed at the plate and on the mound all night. It was great to see everyone rally together and find a way to win two close games.”
In the opener, the Wildcats got out to the early lead with three runs in the second inning. Sophomore Bristol Barbour singled home Jackson Howard and Jack Anderson, while senior Brody McGreer drove in Nathaniel Lamm with another single.
Lansing scored two in the fourth to cut the Louisburg lead to one, but the Wildcats got those runs right back. In the top of the fifth, Anderson singled home Declan Battle and Luke Schultz to make it a 5-2 game.
Lousiburg senior Declan Battle makes contact with a pitch last week at Piper.
The Lions scored two in the bottom of the fifth to make it a one run game, but the Wildcats were able to hold on.
Junior Alex Saad got the win for Louisburg as he gave up four runs on five innings and had a pair of strikeouts. Junior Carter Willey pitched the final two innings and gave up just one hit to get the save.
In the second game, Louisburg scored a pair of runs in the fourth and fifth innings to take a 4-2 lead after five, but Lansing scored two in the bottom of the seventh to send the game to extra innings.
It was then when senior Conner Heston provided some heroics. Meade Rutherford led the inning with a walk, while Barbour and Lamm each singled to load the bases.
Heston followed with a single to score Saad, who was pinch-running for Rutherford, to give the Wildcats the lead back.
“Conner put pressure on them and got the job done,” Larson said. “We talk all the time about putting pressure and he did just that, and it paid off for us.”
Rutherford pitched the final three innings to get the win, including working a scoreless bottom of the eighth. Anderson got the start for Louisburg and pitched five innings and gave up just two earned runs and had four strikeouts.
“Jack Anderson threw really well for us,” Larson said. “He hasn’t gotten much work on the mound this year and he stepped up and competed for us.”
Lamm led the Wildcat offense with a pair of hits, a double and 2 RBIs, while junior Luke Schultz also had two hits. Sophomore Danny Napier and Anderson each added a double as well.
Louisburg is back in action today as the Wildcats travel to Blue Valley High School for a single game. First pitch is set for 4:45 p.m.
Wildcats record road split at Piper
Gusty winds provided an offensive explosion for Louisburg during last Tuesday’s road doubleheader at Piper.
The Wildcats used their bats to hold on for a 19-15 victory over the Pirates in the opener and won their ninth straight game at the time. That streak came to an end a couple hours later.
Piper scored a pair of runs late as the Pirates snapped Louisburg’s streak, 7-5.
“We found a way to win game one in less than ideal conditions,” Larson said. “We took advantage of some opportunities they gave us and turned it into some much needed run support. I liked the way we battled and continued playing hard.”
Louisburg shortstop Bristol Barbour makes a diving stop and record an out last week at Piper.
Louisburg used the long ball to its advantage in the first game as the Wildcats got home runs from Nathaniel Lamm and Declan Battle to power the Wildcats’ offense.
Battle had a home run, a double and 4 RBIs to lead the Wildcat bats, while Lamm also homered and doubled and drove in three runs.
Sophomore Danny Napier also was big at the plate with two doubles and 4 RBIs, while junior Luke Schultz had three hits, a triple and 3 RBIs. Seniors Jackson Howard and Jack Anderson also drove in a run.
The Wildcats took a 11-3 lead going into the bottom of the third before Piper struck for seven in its half of the inning to make it a one-run game. Louisburg answered right back with six in the fourth inning to hold on for the win.
Junior Jayce Toms and Battle combined to throw the first six innings for Louisburg, while junior Carter Willey got the save with an inning of work in the seventh.
In the nightcap, Lamm continued his strong performance at the plate with his second home run of the night — a grand slam — that gave Louisburg a one-run lead in the fourth.
Piper tied it with a run in the fourth and added two more in the fifth to take the lead for good.
Anderson led Louisburg’s bats with two hits, including a solo home run.
Schultz started the game for Louisburg and gave up just one earned run through four innings and struck out five. Three Wildcat errors led to four unearned runs.
