Huntley outslugs Hampshire
The Winter that Wouldn’t Die nearly claimed another victim. Hampshire and Huntley got their softball game in on Tuesday, but it wasn’t much of an aesthetic success.
After moving the game from Hampshire to Huntley, the Fox Valley Conference crossover opponents shivered through seven innings, with the Red Raiders ultimately claiming a 10-8 victory.
“Happy we played a game today, by no means was it pretty,” said Huntley coach Mark Petryniec. “Sometimes it’s good just to have enough to get a win.”
Hampshire, as the nominal home team, batted last. Down 10-4 entering the bottom of the seventh, the Whip-Purs rallied for 4 runs and brought the tying run to the plate, but Huntley starter Haley Spannraft got the final out to nail down the win.
The Red Raiders (7-1) took control with 4 runs in the third. Mackenzie Brown’s second double of the game was the big hit, but the Raiders also took advantage of some shaky Hampshire defense.
Hampshire answered in the bottom half with a 3-run homer by Rebecca Hurst, a tremendous shot to straightaway center field.
After that, Spannraft held the Whips (3-6) in check until the seventh.
“After she hit the home run, I knew that I needed to get more power into my pitch,” said Spannraft. “I had to keep driving off my legs harder than I was before and I was able to get pitches by them.”
Hampshire starter Jennifer Hurst pitched better than the linescore would indicate, but was not helped out by the defense.
“We just need everything working together,” said Hampshire coach Stacey Stepek. “The bats came alive finally, but we didn’t do it on defense.”
Another Hampshire error opened the gates for a 3-run inning by Huntley in the sixth. Miranda Peterson’s 2-run single, her second hit of the day, capped the rally.
Those runs obviously came in handy when Hampshire rallied in the seventh. Jennifer Hurst drove in 2 runs with a single and a third scored when the ball was misplayed in the outfield. Haley Widmayer singled in another run, but that was as close as the Whips could get.
Widmayer and Jennifer Hurst each finished with 2 hits for Hampshire.