Gallatin’s softball Lady Bulldogs may be young, but lately they have been coming through in the clutch like battle-tested veterans. After winning back-to-back games in their last at bat, the GHS girls had to knuckle down and prevent South Harrison from doing the same against them on Tuesday.
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With two runners on base and two outs, relief pitcher Sara Lin induced a fly ball to Kaitlyn Hefley in left field for the third out that secured a 3-2 win over South Harrison and kept Gallatin a perfect 3-0 in Grand River Conference play.
Gallatin built a 2-0 lead in the second inning when Hefley and Megan Beck both came around to score. South Harrison plated a run in the fourth. Gallatin added another counter in the fifth on back-to-back hits by Lin and Kailey Salmon. South Harrison struck for a lone run in the sixth, thanks to a pair of leadoff doubles.
Lin, Beck and Celsie Baker each had a pair of hits for the Lady Bulldogs, who improved to 6-2 overall.
Baker ripped a two-out, walk-off single in the bottom of the seventh inning to score Salmon and Kirbie Crouse with the winning runs as Gallatin rallied to beat Maysville, 3-2, last Wednesday in Grand River Conference softball action.
The Lady Bulldogs entered the final inning trailing, 3-0, and having shown very little offensive smack to that point. Kaitlyn McNeely singled with one out and made it all the way to third on a two-base overthrow error. She came home with the first GHS run after a passed ball.
Sara Lin followed with a hard smash to shortstop that Maysville’s Torri Blythe couldn’t corral. Salmon reached on a walk. Crouse blooped a single over the infield, but Lin was thrown out at the plate trying for the game-tying run.
Morgan Horvatin was hit hard by a pitch to load the bases for Baker, who delivered a solid single in the gap and touched first base as the winning runs plated.
The Lady Wolverines scored twice in the fifth on a pair of singles, a fielder’s choice, error and walk. Maysville stranded two runners in scoring position in the first four innings. Gallatin left three in scoring position over the first four stanzas.
Baker earned the win for the Lady Bulldogs in relief of Lin.
McNeely and Lin each finished with three singles. Baker chalked up two hits. Salmon and Crouse each singled and scored a run.
Hefley came through in the clutch in Thursday’s 7-6 conference win over Princeton. She tripled in the seventh inning and scored on a passed ball to push Gallatin to 2-0 in the GRC. She also drove in a pair of runs with two hits and scored once.
Other hitting stars in the Princeton game were Horvatin, 2-for-3 with two runs and two batted in; Baker, two hits and a run scored; Crouse, one hit and two runs scored; Salmon, one hit; and Lin, one hit and one run.
Gallatin finished with a 2-1 record and third place in the recent Albany Tournament. The Lady Bulldogs defeated Worth County, 13-1, lost to Stanberry, 8-4, and knocked off Albany, 18-5.
Gallatin travels to Stanberry on Thursday looking to avenge an that early season loss. The Lady Bulldogs are back home next Monday to face Mid-Buchanan at 4:30.