The Madison High girls’ softball team lost a tough Liberty District game at Marshall, 6-5, on April 22. Unfortunately, it rained throughout the game. Madison entered the sixth inning leading 2-1. But Marshall, after an error, a base hit and a wild pitch, was able to take a 3-2 lead into the seventh inning. In that final frame, Madison had four base hits in the driving rain, and after a Statesman error, was able to take a 5-3 lead. In the bottom half of the seventh, with field conditions becoming sloppy, Marshall was able to pull out the victory with the help of a hit batter, two Warhawk errors, and a solid double to left to plate the tying and winning runs.
On offense for Madison, EmJ Fogel led the way, going 3-for-4, and Toni MacReynolds and Rachel Daul contributed two hits each. Sam Brady went the distance on the mound, giving up five hits, a walk and a hit batter. The loss dropped the Warhawks to second place in the district with four games remaining in the regular season.
In its previous game, Madison came away with a 5-1 road win over district rival Langley. Brady started in the circle and pitched six innings, giving up her first earned run of the season in the first inning — a solo home run. She recorded seven strikeouts, no walks and scattered four hits. Nina Waters worked the seventh to preserve the victor y.
Madison's defense had another great game, committing no errors on the night. Alexa Fleming made a running catch in right field. Laura Wolff, after catching a ball in center field, fired home to nail a runner trying to tag-up. On offense, the Warhawks amassed 10 hits, with Ashley Meister and Kaila Conlon each getting two hits and Fogel collecting two RBIs. The win improved Madison's season record to 13-1.
In a recent non-district outing, Madison beat perennial private school power, Bishop O'Connell, 3-0. Brady got the start for the Warhawks and pitched a complete game, five-hit shutout, with one walk and one strikeout. Her defense made play after play behind her, culminating with a spectacular game-ending gem by Khristin Kyllo, who dove for a ball hit up the middle and, from the ground, flipped to Conlon to get the force at second to preserve the shutout victory. Veronica Slingerman, MacReynolds, Daul and Wolff also made strong defensive plays for the Warhawks.
On offense, the Warhawks managed only five hits, but they were timely and proved the difference in the game. Kyllo set the pace early by singling to left in her first at-bat. Daul delivered a hit later in the inning that drove in two runs to give Madison an early lead. Later in the game, Ashley Meister drove home the third Madison run with a sacrifice fly to left field, plating Lindsay Weber who had come in to pinch run for MacReynolds. The win was the ninth shutout of the season for Madison.