5th inning hit parade spurs Lady Raiders to 11-1 win

SOUTHERN PINES — A six-run fifth inning helped the Richmond Senior High School varsity softball team shut the door on Pinecrest 11-1 in five innings Wednesday night.

The Lady Raiders (1-1) went from the top of the batting order, all the way through the bottom and back to the top again in the fifth inning, as the Lady Patriots (1-1) weren’t able to get Richmond out.

Six hits from six players, including three doubles, led to two RBIs each by sophomore Macy Steen and freshman Katie Way, plus an additional RBI each from senior Paige Ransom and sophomore Quston Leviner.

Since Pinecrest was unable to score in the bottom of the fifth inning, the 10-run rule was enforced, ending the game.

However, despite scoring five runs in the first three innings, head coach Mike Way said he felt like the Lady Raiders didn’t hit the ball well to start the game.

“We really just started putting the ball in play — we put it in play and put some pressure on them and that’s kind of what we needed to do in the first couple innings and we just didn’t get it done,” Way said. “We could kind of see where the game was going. We need to do better at putting them away early instead of letting them hang around so long, but better late than never, I guess.”

After facing Purnell Swett’s speed and power from the pitcher’s mound in Monday’s 6-5 loss, Way said Richmond’s batters took a couple innings to adjust to Pinecrest’s slower pitching.

“On Monday, you’re seeing 60-63 miles per hour and today you’re seeing the exact opposite of that,” Way said. “It’s a bad combination. It’s hard for timing, and in five innings, it’s hard to get your timing. We started getting it a little bit there towards the end, but we just did what we needed to do to win and not much more, honestly.”

Most, if not all, of the Lady Raiders play highly competitive travel softball during the offseason. The quality of pitching that they hit against on those teams is similar to what faced Monday.

“None of us are used to that type of pitching,” Steen said. “It was definitely a slow start because of that.”

Steen was 3-for-3 at bat and finished with three RBIs. At the top of the batting order, junior Allyiah Swiney was 1-for-3 with two RBIs in the second inning, while Junior Kenleigh Frye was 2-for-3. Senior Payton Chappell had an RBI triple in the third inning.

Against the slower pitching, Steen said she had to pick her spots and be patient at bat.

“I was just waiting a little bit longer, waiting to be in a great spot to hit it, instead of trying to really hack at it and end up pulling out,” Steen said.

Senior Kearston Bruce pitched the first three innings, tallying four strikeouts, giving up two hits and recording the win. Leviner cleaned things up in the fourth and fifth innings and had two strikeouts, allowing just one hit.

“I think my screwball was working really good because I noticed they were catching up to curveballs or anything outside,” Leviner said. “Inside, it took them a minute to get around the ball, and if they got around the ball, they fouled it off or hit it to the third baseman.”

Next up, the Lady Raiders will face Jack Britt Monday March 22 for their home opener.