Thanks to an unprecedented offensive display, the Houston High School softball team beat Cabool 23-2 in a South Central Association conference game Monday at Carter Field.
The victory took only 2 1/2 innings due to the run rule, as Houston scored a program record 21 runs in the bottom of the second inning and then held the visiting Lady Bulldogs scoreless in the top of the third.
The Lady Tigers sent 25 batters to the plate during the titanic rally, collecting 11 hits and taking advantage of 9 walks and a hit batter.
“I was pretty pleased with the girls,” said head coach Jim Moore. “We adjusted to their pitching and were able to stay back on the ball and put it in play and hit it pretty hard. I also liked how aggressive we were on the basepaths.”
Speaking of unprecedented, HHS senior Makinley Aaron came to the plate three times during the frame and made the most of each trip, smacking a grand slam home run and a pair of RBI doubles. She ended up going 4-for-4 in the game, driving in 7 runs and scoring 1.
Aaron’s homer (a line shot to left-center that left the yard in a hurry) was her team-high sixth of the season, and she finished the game with a robust batting average of .596 and a whopping 34 RBIs, both team-highs. After she graduates this spring, Aaron will continue playing ball at East Central College in Union, Missouri.
“She’s something else,” Moore said. “She’s seeing the ball really well right now and putting good swings on it. Whenever she connects, it’s going to be hit hard somewhere.”
Houston finished with 14 hits in the contest. Senior center fielder Lacey Caveness went 3-for-3 with a double, a walk, 5 RBIs and 4 runs, while senior shortstop Sophia Crites went 3-for-3 with a triple, 4 RBIs and 3 runs.
Aaron was also in the pitcher’s circle for Houston and allowed 2 hits and 2 earned runs while striking out 3 and walking 4.
“We got a good pitching performance from Makinley, and played some good defense behind her,” Moore said. “That was a pretty good ball game all the way around.”
Cabool actually hung tough early, scoring twice in the top of the second inning to tie the score at 2-apiece.
The Lady Bulldogs threatened to extend the game, getting runners on second and third with nobody out in the top of the third inning, but they were denied when Aaron and freshman third baseman Ava Koch hooked up for a pick-off play at third and then Aaron recorded a strikeout and got the final batter on a pop foul to Koch.
The Lady Tigers (10-7, 2-2 SCA) face a pair of key SCA road matchups this week, traveling to Willow Springs on Tuesday (April 22) and heading to Ava on Thursday (April 24). Both teams are in the same district as Houston this season.
“We’re going to get tested for sure,” Moore said. “We’re excited about the challenge. We need to put two good performances together because we’re jockeying for district seeding. Our district is loaded, and these next two games will tell a lot about where we end up.
“I think whoever comes out of our district will have a chance at a deep run in the postseason.”
