News
   Valley Center
   Park City
   Kechi
   Bel Aire
   School
   Sheriff
   Police & Fire
   Deaths
   Looking Back
   Heard on Main Street
Municipal Court
Sports
   School Sports
   Rec League
People
   General
   Birthdays
   Engagements & Weddings
Opinions
   Editorials
   Letters
   Commentary
Columns
Church
Advertising
   Classified
   Legal

Taylor Rowley tags out a Maize South baserunner May 1. The Hornets won 3-2 and 11-1.

Valley sweeps Maize South, drops game at Goddard
By Chris Strunk
Last Updated: May 07, 2015

The Valley Center High School softball team swept a league doubleheader, dropped a game at Goddard and then got into the second before rain stopped play.

The Hornets are 10-5 overall and 7-2 in the Ark Valley Chisholm Trail League II.

"We will keep trying to improve as we head to regionals," said Valley Center coach Corey Jones.

At Goddard, Valley Center fell 8-0 in the first game, plagued by walks, wild pitches and fielding errors.

Goddard took advantage, scoring three runs in the third, four in the second and a run in the third.

Valley Center left runners on in the first, fourth and fifth, but most had trouble with Goddard's starting pitcher, Julisa Ortega, who struck out four and gave up just one hit in the shutout.

"They made our mistakes hurt," Jones said. "Good teams will put a lot of pressure on the infielders."

Goddard is undefeated in the league.

"Goddard does not have many weaknesses," Jones said.

Hornet starting pitcher Ashlyn Jacobs settled down after the first two innings, but the damage had already been done.

Valley Center was up 5-3 in the second inning of the second game before it was suspended.

Valley scored four runs in the first inning. Kaylee Burnett drove in two runs and Kaitlan Stanhope had a pair of RBIs with a two-out double to center.

The Hornets added a run in the second inning when Taylor Rowley hit a leadoff triple and Wylie Glover singled to center for the RBI.

Goddard scored three runs in the second.

Jones said he didn't know when the game would resume.

The Hornets swept Maize South in a double-header at home May 1, beating the Mavericks 3-2 on a seventh-inning walk-off triple by LaTaylah Perez and cruising to a comfortable 11-1 victory in the nightcap.

"It's nice to get a comeback," Jones said. "… It's a good learning experience."

In the first game, a pitchers' duel turned into an exciting come-from-behind decision.

After a scoreless five innings, Maize South got on the board with a run in the sixth and tacked on another in the seventh for a 2-0 lead going into Valley Center's final chance at the plate.

Ashley Thorne led off with a single to right and Stanhope followed with a ground ball to short. Hayden Francis reached first on an error, and Thorne scored from second.

With one out, Perez hit a two-strike screamer to left field to score Jacobs and Francis and win the game.

Jacobs went the distance and got the win, striking out eight and giving up 10 hits.

"She's doing everything she can to help the team," Jones said of the sophomore pitcher.

Valley Center had just four hits in the game.

The second game was different.

Valley Center had 12 hits and pitcher Burnett limited Maize South to four hits in a six-inning affair.

Rowley started the game with a home run over the center field fence.

"We kind of took them out of the game pretty quick," Jones said.

It didn't stop there, either. Valley Center scored three runs in the third and three in the fourth and then ended the game on a run rule with four tallies in the sixth.

Perez walked in the sixth and Rowley hit a single on the ground to left field. Burnett reached on an error as Perez scored. Elena Turner knocked in Rowley with a single to left.

With bases loaded, Stanhope hit a grounder to left to score two and end the game.

Burnett got the win for the Hornets. She struck out six and gave up just four hits but no walks.

Rowley had three hits, while Glover, Burnett and Perez had two each.

Valley Center is scheduled to play at Andover May 8 (a makeup league doubleheader) and will host Campus and Cheney May 12.

Junior varsity — The Valley Center junior varsity team improved to 7-10 with a 12-2 victory over Maize South May 1.

Coach Dave Friess said it was the Hornets' best defensive game of the season, committing only one error.

Valley Center scored five in the first and five in the second.

Alora Klinkhammer had two hits. Reagan Fischer hit a double. Ashlyn Joyal scored three runs. Klinkhammer was the winning pitcher, striking out seven without a walk.






Trending Stories
Deaths KRISTINA LEONARD

Legals SEDGWICK COUNTY PUBLIC NOTICE

Valley Center City trims street projects

Valley Center Wrapped in love

Valley Center Student enrollment sees a small dip

Other Sections
News

Sports

People

Columns

Opinion

Contact Ark Valley News | Archives