Maybe losing a game wasn’t the worst thing that ever happened to the Lady Tigers softball team. Republic won two more games Saturday, beating Walnut Grove 14-0 and beating Naylor 11-0.
Friday, Platte County handed Republic its first loss of the year, and the Lady Tigers immediately responded with an 11-0 win over East Newton later in the day. Since that loss, they’ve now won three games by a combined score of 36-0.
Republic 14, Walnut Grove 0
In Saturday’s opener against Walnut Grove, a seven-run third inning helped seal the deal for Republic. The top two hitters in the lineup, Kaitlyn Ragsdale and Megan Weis, each had three base hits. Weis drove in three runs and scored another. Ragsdale drove in two and scored three times. Julia Higgins hit her fifth home run of the year.
Avery Romans pitched five shutout innings, allowing just two hits. She struck out four and didn’t walk a batter.
Republic 11, Naylor 0
In Saturday’s second game, AJ Fenske homered and pitched a five-hit shutout to fuel Republic. Fenske finished 3-for-3 with three runs scored. Weis, Higgns, and Megan Thorne had two hits apiece. Higgins had three RBIs.
Weis had a tournament to remember. In five games, she had 13 hits in 16 at-bats, including a 4-for-4 performance on Friday in the tournament opener.
“Weis is our go-getter, our tough player. She’s on fire right now,” Dishman says. “She had a bad game Thursday against Carthage, and we sat her down and talked to her about it, and she’s responded real well.”
Dishman says in addition to Weis’ hot hitting the lower third of the lineup has been productive, as well.
“The bottom of our lineup — Avery Romans, Emma White, and Riley Laub — they’re carrying us in the bottom of the lineup. One through nine, our hitters are carrying us and doing what they’re supposed to, so we couldn’t ask for more.”
Republic is now 10-1.