AURORA, Mo. — The 2022 softball season got underway on Friday with Joplin sweeping a pair of games on the opening day of the Kick Off Classic hosted by Aurora High School, with Carl Junction closing the day with a split.
The Eagles (2-0) earned an 18-5 win over Aurora before defeating Carl Junction (1-1) in the second game, 3-2. The Bulldogs also earned a 15-3 win over Aurora.
JOPLIN 18, AURORA 5
Joplin started quickly with four runs touching home in the first inning before adding seven in the third, four runs in the fourth and three more tallies in the fifth on the way to the five-inning win in the opening game.
Jill McDaniel earned the win after allowing one unearned run on two hits, three walks and six strikeouts in 3 2/3 innings. Ava Wolf allowed four runs, three earned, on two hits, three walks and a strikeout in 1 1/3 innings of relief.
Abby Williams took the loss after allowing 11 runs, nine earned, on seven hits, seven walks and a strikeout in three innings. Kenzie Malott allowed seven runs, two earned, on six hits, three walks and a strikeout in two relief innings.
Joplin scored 18 runs on 13 hits, with Bailey Ledford, Riley Kelly, Izzy Yust, Abby Lowery and Maria Loum all recording two hits apiece. Ledford doubled, walked, scored twice and drove in two, while Kelly had a double, drove in three and scored twice. Lowery had three RBI and scored a run, while Loum tripled, drove in two and scored twice. Libby Munn doubled, scored two runs and tallied two RBI, while Yust scored twice and picked up an RBI.
JOPLIN 3, CARL JUNCTION 2
Carl Junction took the early momentum with two runs in the top of the first inning before Joplin rallied with single tallies in the second, third and fourth innings and held the Bulldogs at bay the rest of the way en route to the victory.
CJ landed the first punch with two runs scoring in the opening frame after a run-scoring triple to center from Sammie Sims before Madi Olds followed with an RBI groundout to build a 2-0 cushion.
Joplin cut the lead in half after Munn scored Lowery, who reached on an error, with a sacrifice fly to center. After the Bulldogs stranded a pair of runners in the top of the third inning, the Eagles tied the game at 2-2 on a Jaydn Pankow two-out solo home run to left field. Lowery doubled to left to lead off the last of the fourth before scoring later on a two-out shallow single in left-center field to put Joplin in front for good, 3-2.
Carl Junction went down in order in its final three at-bats.
McDaniel earned the complete-game win in the circle, allowing two runs on three hits, two walks and 10 punchouts in seven innings of work.
Hannah Cole took the loss after allowing three runs, two earned, on five hits in three innings. Kiley Spencer allowed three hits and struck out one in three scoreless relief innings.
Pankow had two hits, an RBI and a run scored, while Kirsten McMillen, Kelly, Yust, Lowery, who doubled, Munn and Loum all had hits for Joplin.
Sims had two hits, including a triple, an RBI and scored a run, while Spencer also had a hit for the Bulldogs.
CARL JUNCTION 15, AURORA 3
The Bulldogs close their day with four-inning win after plating five runs in the first inning to jump out in front before putting the game away with nine runs crossing home in the fourth.
Spencer earned the win after allowing three runs, two earned, on four hits, two walks and six strikeouts in four innings.
Williams took the loss after allowing 15 runs, 11 earned, on 11 hits, three walks and two strikeouts in 3 2/3 innings.
Ryleigh Palmer had two hits, including a triple, two runs scored and an RBI, while Izzie Southern had two hits, three RBI and scored twice. Dezi Williams tripled on the way to two hits, two RBI and two runs scored. Sims had one hit, scored twice and drove in two. Hannah Cantrell had one hit, scored a run and walked once, while Georgia Arnold had a hit, scored twice and drove in one to go along with a walk.
