Central Oregonian

Cowgirls blast Highlanders

CCHS wins season opener 12-1 in five innings as Miranda Smith pitches a no-hitter

LON AUSTIN/CENTRAL OREGONIAN

Emily Benton blasts a home run in the first inning of the Cowgirls’ win over the Burns Highlanders. Benton was 2-3 from the plate in the contest.

Lon Austin

March 14, 2013

The Crook County Cowgirls were impressive in their season debut as they blasted the Burns Highlanders 12-1 in non-league softball action.

The Cowgirls scored the 12 runs despite batting in just four innings because of the 10-run rule.

“We had first-game jitters, but all-in-all I’m pretty happy with the first game,” head coach Gary White said. “Obviously the level Burns played at wasn’t great, but you can still lose to that level.”

Pitcher Miranda Smith struck out the side in the top of the first inning. Then Crook?County exploded for five runs in the bottom of the inning.

Leadoff batter Karlee Hollis was hit by a pitch, then stole second base before Jena Ovens drove her in with a triple. Ovens scored on the same play after the Highlanders committed a throwing error.

Ovens’ triple was followed by an Emily Benton home run, and the Cowgirls had a 3-0 lead after just three batters.

“It felt good,” Benton said of her homer. “I thought it hit the fence, but it went over.”

The Highlanders generated a run in the second inning on a walk, a passed ball, a sacrifice ground ball, and a wild pitch.

Smith allowed just two more base runners the remainder of the game, striking out 10, while not giving up a hit in the contest.

“I’m pleased with the way the season started,” Smith said. “I like the new plan where the coach is calling the pitches from the dugout. It’s less stress on me.”

Smith added that she believed that Benton’s home run was the key to the game for the Cowgirls.

“I think that Emily’s home run was a good starter for us, because it showed everybody hey, we can hit off of this girl,” she said.

The Cowgirls added two more runs in the third inning to push their lead to 7-1. Crook County took advantage of Highlander errors to score five more runs in the bottom of the fourth inning to blow the game wide open.

Benton and Ovens both finished the game two for three from the plate, while Smith and Taylor Hilderbrand had the other two Cowgirl hits.

White was pleased with both the team’s hitting and aggressive base running in the contest.

“We had two or three innings where we were swinging the bats really good,” he said. “I’ve told the kids that we are going to run the bases and we are going to keep pressure on the catcher, that’s just the way we are.”

White was also pleased with the performance of Kaylee Wright-Johnson, who played catcher for the first time during the contest.

“Wright-Johnson has a bad rib, so I was a little hesitant about putting her back there,” he said. “But she did a good job.”

The Cowgirls are back in action on Saturday when they host Estacada in a 1 p.m. contest.

Tuesday, March 12

Crook County 12, Burns 1

at Crook County

Burns 0 1 0 0 0 — 1 0 4

Crook County 5 0 2 5 x — 12 6 0

Smith and Wright-Johnson. Extra base hits — Burns; none. Crook County; Jena Ovens, triple. Emily Benton, home run.