TOPEKA — Survive and advance became the words of the day for Allen Community College’s softball team, after the Red Devils dropped the opening game of the Region VI-Division II Tournament Wednesday.
Allen’s 7-2 loss to Cowley County dropped the Red Devils to the consolation bracket, where they fended off a Labette rally to prevail, 8-5.
The victory keeps Allen (22-26) alive for now, with the longest of roads looming for a potential tournament title.
Allen must maneuver its way through the consolation side, starting Thursday afternoon against top-seeded Johnson County. (Results were unavailable by press time.)
Then, Allen would have to win four more times to emerge with the regional championship Saturday afternoon at Topeka’s Lake Shawnee Softball Complex.
Things started well enough Wednesday. Leadoff batter Brooklyn Goehring roped a triple to start the game. She scored on Bailee Campbell’s RBI single to right. But even after Hayley Gerberding made it three straight hitters to reach safely to start the frame, the Red Devils failed to score again.
The Tigers knotted the proceedings in the bottom of the first on a sacrifice fly and took a 2-1 lead in the second on a passed ball.
A walk and two singles triggered two more Cowley runs in the third, before a double, single and triple — all with two outs in the fourth — made it 7-1.
Allen catcher Ashley Tribble blasted an 0-2 pitch over the fence for a solo home run in the top of the seventh for Allen’s final run.
Goehring had a single and triple, while Tribble’s home run and singles by Campbell and Gerberding accounted for Allen’s offense. Camrynn Yardley pitched 3.2 innings, striking out four and allowing 1 hit. Campbell came on in relief, allowing a hit with a strikeout over 2.1 innings.
A WILD, back-and-forth affair followed as Allen and Labette Community College scrambled to stay alive.
Madisyn Havenstein walked with the bases loaded, Yardley singled in a run and Tribble hit a sac fly as the Red Devils took a quick 3-0 lead.
Labette sliced the lead to 3-2 in the bottom of the third before Goehring had a one-out RBI double and Gerberding singled with two down to bring Goehring home.
Jena Hendrix singled to lead off ACC’s fifth inning. Tribble followed with a two-out single before Kalyn Miller hit a fly ball and reached on an error, making it 6-3. Goehring then was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded for the seventh run.
Campbell’s bases-loaded walk in the seventh capped the scoring.
