Bats carry Lady Tigers to pair of wins over Kansas City

Pounding out 29 hits in two games, the No. 8-ranked Cowley College softball team swept a doubleheader against Kansas City Tuesday in Ark City.

The Lady Tigers run-ruled the Lady Blue Devils 14-6 and 11-0 to run its winning streak to 11 games. Cowley is now 24-4 overall and 8-0 in the Jayhawk Conference Eastern Division.

Cowley overcame an uncharacteristic rocky start by Heather Davis as she allowed four runs in 2 1/3 innings. With Cowley trailing 4-0, Breayle Tackett relieved Davis on the mound and kept the Lady Tigers within striking distance.

Tackett (pictured) not only did the job on the mound, she also led the Lady Tigers’ charge at the plate. Tackett’s three-run double in the bottom of the third inning got Cowley on the board. Kashilia Young followed with a run scoring triple and later scored on a wild pitch to put Cowley ahead 5-4.

“If we had not jumped right back on them right there in the third inning Kansas City might have had the momentum to close the game on us,” Cowley head coach Ed Hargrove said.

Tackett again got things started in the fourth inning as her RBI single was the first of five runs in the inning. Jacey Juden hit a two-run bloop double, while Sara Smith and Emily Zimmerman had RBI singles in the inning.

Juden drove in her third run of the game in the fifth inning, and Cowley answered Kansas City’s two runs in the top of the sixth by ending the game with three runs in the bottom half of the inning.

Fittingly, Tackett ended the game with an RBI single. Tackett went 3-for-4 with two doubles and five RBI’s at the plate as she raised her average to .500 on the season. She also picked up her first win of the season on the mound by scattering five hits and two runs in 3 2/3 innings pitched.

“Breayle really saved the day for us,” Hargrove said. “She came in during a rally and put out the fire. And offensively, she’s just a machine.”

Seven Lady Tigers had at least two hits in the win as they out-hit Kansas City 17-9.

In the second game, Juden tossed her second consecutive complete game shutout in the Lady Tigers’ 11-0 five-inning run-rule win. Juden surrendered just two hits, while striking out four in improving to 10-3 on the season.

“Jacey has really been bearing down to get outs when she needs to,” Hargrove said.

Tackett again led the way offensively as she went 3-for-3 with two RBI’s and three runs scored. Juden helped her cause at the plate by going 2-for-2 with a triple and two RBI’s. Sara Smith also went 2-for-2 with two RBI’s, while Colby Hart went 2-for-3 with a triple and two runs scored.

The losses drop Kansas City to 4-15 overall and 3-7 in the Jayhawk East.

Cowley will return to action Thursday when they play at Labette at 2 p.m. Labette is currently two games behind the Lady Tigers with a conference mark of 6-2.

Last season, Labette handed the Lady Tigers one of its only two conference losses.
“We will definitely have to play well to win,” Hargrove said.