Joplin built an early lead before Branson took control in the middle innings only to see the Eagles rally late to beat the Pirates 18-12 in a Central Ozark Conference slugfest on Thursday at the JHS Athletic Complex.
Joplin scored three times in the first two innings before a pair of four-run innings in the third and fourth frames, thanks to several miscues in the field by Joplin, put Branson on top 8-6. The Eagles scored five times in the fifth to rally for the lead before the Pirates regained the advantage in the sixth. Joplin once again rallied with a big inning in the bottom of the sixth when seven runs touched home to secure the win.
“A wise man once said to me, ‘It was ugly but I ain’t apologizing for it.’ We’ll take the win but that wasn’t good softball, particularly on the defensive side,” Joplin coach Brenden Schneider said. “We have got to find a way to help our pitchers out. We had three walks and a hit-by-pitch, which is normal for a high school softball game. But you can’t add four errors on top of that. That was an ugly game. We’re just glad we came out on top.”
Joplin’s offense churned out 18 runs on 16 hits, while Branson scored 12 runs on 10 hits. Both teams combined for nine errors in the game, with only five of the 12 runs scored by the Pirates being earned.
“The offensive side of the ball is not a problem,” Schneider said of the production of offense. “We feel like we can score at any time when our lineup is working. … Our girls are really good at the plate and do a great job of talking to each other. … Credit to our girls for making the adjustment, which they always do.”
HIT PARADE
Joplin went to work with the bats in its first at-bat, scoring twice to get the Eagles out in front. Jadyn Pankow, who just missed a home run foul in her first plate appearance, delivered the first blow with an RBI single to right-center field with one out before Ava Wolf picked up an RBI later in an inning with a sacrifice fly to left to push the lead to 2-0.
The Eagles added a run to the lead when Bailey Ledford picked up an RBI on a groundout in the second inning that scored Maria Loum, who doubled with one out to get on base.
Branson rebounded with a four spot in the top of the third inning that was highlighted by a three-run home run by Jerzi Yacko to give the Pirates their first lead, 4-3.
The Eagles responded with a three-run third inning fueled by a sac fly from Lily Glover and an RBI single through the left side by Loum to tie the game. The final run came around to score on a throwing error by Branson after Ledford reached on an infield hit, with the throw going up the first-base line to give Joplin a 6-4 advantage.
Kylyn Hall led off the fourth with a solo home run before Branson tied the game up at 6-6 later in the inning when a run came home on a Joplin fielding error with the bases loaded. Yacko delivered in the next at-bat with a two-run double down the line to left for an 8-6 lead.
“We just have to make the routine play,” Schneider said of the defensive effort. “The little things have got to be cleaned up. We cannot do that to our pitchers. We are finding ways to hurt them … We make one mistake and then compound it by trying to do too much. We just need to make the routine play.”
The Pirates added a run in the top of the fifth on an opposite-field single by Jaidah Schwark with two outs and runners on first and second to make the score 9-6.
Joplin trimmed the lead to one run in the last of the fifth when Abby Lowery reached on a fielder’s choice to third base with runners on second and third, with a second run scoring on a throwing error back to the plate by the Branson catcher. Riley Kelly ripped a ball through the left side of the infield for a run-scoring single before Taryn Casey brought two more runs home with a double to left-center field with a pair in scoring position for an 11-9 lead.
Branson added three runs in the top of the sixth inning to regain the lead. Savi Engel had a two-run single in the inning to tie the game up at 11-all, while Kaleah Morrison added an RBI single with two outs to give the Pirates the advantage.
Ledford singled in the last of the sixth before straight stealing second and stealing third on a delay before coming around to score on a Lowery opposite-field single to tie the game at 12s. After Pankow was intentionally walked for a third time, Kelly came up big again with a run-scoring single to left-center to give Joplin a 13-12 advantage. Casey followed with a single up the middle to plate a run, and Glover bunted with the bags full and reached on an infield hit to push the lead to 15-12, with a second run coming around to score on the play when the throw home got away from the catcher. Loum added a two-run triple to the opposite field with two outs to wrap the scoring with an 18-12 lead.
“They were talking about it in the dugout about getting one back at a time,” Schneider said of his team’s resolve. “They really came in the dugout every time thinking they were going to score. That’s their mentality. I have never been around a team that talks the way they talk to each other about offense. … They do a great job of communicating.”
IN THE CIRCLE
Caelyn Bobski started and took a no-decision after allowing seven runs, two earned, on three hits, a walk and a strikeout in 3 2/3 innings. Ava Wolf earned the win in relief after allowing five runs, one earned, on six hits and two walks in 3 1/3 innings.
IN THE BOX
Loum had four hits, three RBI and scored three times, while Casey finished with three hits, an RBI and two runs scored. Kelly and Lowery had two hits, two RBI and two runs scored each. Ledford had two hits, scored three times and drove in one. Wolf doubled twice, drove in three and scored a run.
Yacko had three hits, four RBI and two runs scored to lead the Pirates at the plate.
ON DECK
Joplin (8-5, 2-0 COC) hosts Pryor, Oklahoma, and Webb City on Saturday.
