LA PLATA, Mo. - A six-run deficit lasted only half an inning for Atlanta on Wednesday night. The Lady Hornets answered Bevier’s fast start with six runs of their own, then broke the game open with an eight-run second inning on their way to a 19-9 victory in five innings in the opening round of the Class 1, District 5 softball tournament at the La Plata Sports Complex.
Seventh-seeded Atlanta improved to 10-7 and advanced to face second-seeded Schuyler County in the district quarterfinals. Bevier, the tournament’s No. 10 seed, finished its season at 1-13.
Megan Peavler drove in three runs, Jada Nelson delivered a two-run triple and Bella Baker earned the pitching victory in relief as Atlanta recovered from the early deficit. The Lady Hornets finished with nine hits and drew 13 walks, scoring 14 runs in their first two trips to the plate.
Bevier took advantage of walks and Atlanta defensive miscues to build a 6-0 lead in the top of the first. Jasmine Cross and Reese Buster opened the game with walks and both came around to score. A bases-loaded walk to Kelsey Moore and a hit-by-pitch to Mia Brooke brought in two more runs before Cross added a two-run single during her second plate appearance of the inning.
Atlanta turned to Bella Baker with one out in the first, moving Peavler from the circle to right field. Baker worked the remainder of the game, giving the Lady Hornets time to respond offensively.
That response came immediately. Nelson and Memphis White drew walks to begin the bottom of the first, with Nelson scoring Atlanta’s first run on a wild pitch. Peavler followed with an RBI single, and the Lady Hornets continued moving runners around as pitches got away and Bevier struggled to finish plays defensively.
London Smith and Lexie Ross scored on a ball put in play by Hattie Stull, pulling Atlanta within 6-5. Stull then came home when Chloe Shimek reached on an error, completing the six-run comeback before the first inning was over.
Baker kept Bevier off the scoreboard in the second despite a leadoff single by Josie Birdsong. Atlanta then took its first lead in the bottom half and never gave it back.
With two outs, Peavler scored on a passed ball to make it 7-6. The Lady Hornets kept the inning alive with patient at-bats, drawing walks and taking advantage of opportunities to advance. Smith, Ross and Bella Baker each scored as the margin grew to 10-6.
Nelson supplied the inning’s biggest hit, driving a ball to the left-center field fence for a two-run triple that scored Stull and Shimek. After White drew another walk, Peavler delivered a two-run double to extend the lead to 14-6. All eight Atlanta runs in the inning came with two outs.
Bevier answered with a run in the third when Moore singled and scored on Brooke’s double. Atlanta also came up with important defensive plays during the inning, including a leaping catch by Nelson at shortstop and a tag at home by catcher Whitney Baker to retire Brooke and end the threat.
Smith’s RBI single brought White home in the fourth, giving Atlanta a 15-7 advantage. Bevier continued battling in the fifth, scoring twice in an inning that included an RBI double by Cross to trim the deficit to 15-9.
Atlanta finished the game with four runs in the bottom of the fifth. Bella Baker and Stull drew walks, and Shimek singled as the Lady Hornets again put runners aboard. All four runs in the inning scored on wild pitches, with Nelson crossing the plate with one out to give Atlanta the 10-run margin and end the contest.
Peavler went 2-for-3 with a double, three RBIs and two runs scored. Smith was 2-for-2 with an RBI and two walks, while Ross finished 2-for-3 with a double and two runs scored. Nelson drove in two runs and scored three times. White and Stull also scored three runs apiece.
Bella Baker earned the win with 4 2/3 innings of relief, allowing eight hits and four runs while walking one and striking out two. Peavler recorded one out in her start, allowing five runs, one earned, with four walks and a strikeout.
Cross led Bevier by going 2-for-2 with a double, three RBIs and two runs scored. Birdsong added two hits, while Brooke doubled and drove in two runs. Buster and Moore each contributed a hit and an RBI.
Buster took the loss, allowing 12 runs, nine earned, in 1? innings. Madison Aldridge pitched the final 2 2/3 innings for Bevier, allowing seven runs, five earned, and recording one strikeout.
(This game recap is presented based upon the coverage of the Hometown Radio Sports Network. Any statistics given should be deemed as unofficial.)
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