The Cardinals softball team rode strong pitching performances and clutch hitting to a pair of wins over Bonner Springs Monday night.
Junior pitcher Samantha Claire dominated both sides of the ball in game one. She gave up only two hits while slicing through the Bonner Springs lineup to lead the Cardinals to a 7-0 shutout win.
“Just a really, really good job of throwing the ball,” head coach Bill Finucane said. “Didn’t walk many and struck a lot out. She did really good. It’s great.”
Claire said she relied on her curveball and riseball to stay on the front foot all night.
“Getting ahead on batters is something coach Bill has, like, been very on me about this season,” Claire said. “Not throwing away the first two strikes and coming from behind. So that’s something I really worked on tonight. Going right at the batter knowing that I can get them out.”
The Cardinals’ offense got started early in the first game and never looked back. Junior Jaiden Burris joined Claire in the middle of the lineup to form a duo that Bonner Springs had no answer for. Burris smacked a couple of deep line drives for extra-base hits, and Claire brought her home with a pair of RBI singles.
“I know that I can get Jaiden in and rely on her for big innings and big times,” Claire said.
A four-run sixth inning helped put the game away. The inning was highlighted by senior Kenzie Yoder launching a deep fly ball over the Bonner Springs right fielder’s head and sprinting her way to an inside-the-park home run.
It was a slower start in game two, with junior pitcher Olivia O’Toole surrendering a pair of runs in the first inning. But from there, it was lights out for O’Toole and the Cardinals defense.
“She did a great job, even though giving up a couple of runs to start,” Finucane said. “It reinforces the stuff that these kids know that they can do. And we want them to continue to do that, keep that confidence going.”
The offense came alive late, scoring 12 runs and earning a run rule. Junior Alexia Born led the charge. She scored a run and drove in a few more. In the third inning, she hammered a triple over the right fielder’s head.
Nearly everyone in the lineup got involved by drawing walks, getting hits and driving in runs.
“I think our energy was pretty good and our bats, you know, just came along, and that’s really what we need,” Burris said. “And baserunning is also a big part. So, I think those three things helped us a lot.”
O’Toole was able to work around a couple of jams. In the fourth inning, a pair of leadoff walks gave Bonner Springs life, but O’Toole calmly retired the next three batters to end the threat. In the fifth, she worked a pair of flyouts to escape a bases-loaded jam.
Fielding helped the Cardinals hold Bonner Springs to just two runs in two games. Burris led the way with a handful of crucial plays at third base. She said communication was key to the success.
The wins brought the Cardinals to 9-3 on the season. They bounced back from a pair of tough losses to Spring Hill, one of the top teams in the state.
“When you work hard and you run into situations like that, what we told them is to just let that go, come back strong,” Finucane said. “We can either go one way or the other. And this is the way we want them to go. Continue to fight and keep going up. I was very proud of them. They did an excellent job today.”
Burris said there were many things the Cardinals hope to continue from their wins.
“Playing for our team,” Burris said. “And then just communication and hitting early.”
The Cardinals are back in action today against Baldwin.
Reach reporter Cuyler Dunn at [email protected]
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