CARTHAGE, Mo. — Carthage started its week off right after scoring five runs in the first three innings to give Jensyn Elder more than enough support in a 6-1 non-conference win over Nevada on Monday.
Nevada (12-8) scored a run on a passed ball in the top of first inning before Carthage (14-11) rallied with a three spot in the bottom half to take the lead. The Tigers added insurance in the second, third and fifth innings while Elder was nothing short of dominant in the circle to completion.
“Lately, we have been putting a lot more time in our cage,” Carthage coach Stephanie Ray said. “We’ve had a lot of 1-0, 2-0 ballgames and we are trying to score more runs. Today, I think it was a good way to start off the week, going and putting six runs up.”
Elder earned the complete-game win, allowing one unearned run on six hits, three walks and 16 strikeouts in seven innings of work. What kind of a roll is Elder currently on? The win over Nevada was the third straight game Elder has struck out 16 batters.
“She is really good at locking back in if she gives up an early run,” Ray said. “If she gives up a run, she gets right back and knows she is out there to do a job. She competes well in the circle.”
Peyton Eaton took the loss for Nevada after allowing six runs, five earned, on 10 hits, two walks and two strikeouts in six innings.
Bailey Ast led off the Nevada half of the first with a double to right-center before eventually coming around to score on a passed ball to put NHS up 1-0.
Carthage didn’t wait long to respond. Kate Potter hit a one-out single to right before moving to third on a double to center field by Landry Cochran in the next at-bat. After a walk from Presley Probert loaded the bases, Natalie Rodriguez smacked a ball to center that short-hopped the wall for a two-run double. Probert was tagged out in a rundown between third and home on the play, but the throw back to second to get Rodriguez ended up in right field and allowed Rodriguez to come around and touch home to give Carthage a 3-1 lead.
“When they got that 1-0 lead off that passed ball, it was big,” Ray said. “For us to come back, put some runners on base, stay within ourselves, put some balls in play and make things happen, it was big to come out of that first up 3-1.”
“She drove that ball pretty hard,” Ray said of Rodriguez’s go-ahead double. “It got the dugout going. … I think that was probably the hit that got us going for the game.”
Carthage added insurance an inning later when Mary Grace Richmond brought home a run with a sacrifice fly. CHS made the score 5-1 in the bottom of the third after Probert led off the frame with a solo home run to center field.
“We feel like if we score five or six runs, we will be able to win a lot of ball games playing that way,” Ray said of her offense adding on throughout the game. “Like I said, we’ve been playing in a lot of close games, so to get five or six runs is a relief.”
Carthage wrapped its scoring in the fifth when Jordyn Jones drove home a run with a two-out single to left.
“It was huge to come up with that hit,” Ray said. “We have been stranding a lot of runners at second and third. It was nice to see them stepping up and driving them in.”
STATS
Probert homered on the way to two hits, two runs scored and an RBI. Jones had two hits and drove in one. Cochran, Rodriguez and Ashlyn Brust all doubled for Carthage.
Ast had three hits, including a double, and scored a run to lead Nevada.
UP NEXT
Carthage is back to conference play with a matchup at Branson on Tuesday before hosting Ozark on Thursday.
Nevada hosts Smith-Cotton on Tuesday before hosting McDonald County on Wednesday.
