Softball: Hampshire holds off Burlington Central for 7th straight win
Hitless in her first three at-bats Tuesday, Hampshire senior left fielder Alexa Schuring felt obligated to do something big in the bottom of the sixth inning.
In a high-scoring game against Burlington Central, it was Schuring’s two-run double to center field that proved to be the difference to send the red-hot Whip-Purs to their seventh straight victory with an 11-10 Fox Valley Conference win in Hampshire.
“I was basically 0 for 3, I made it to first base on my third at-bat, but I’m like, ‘You know, I want to show up for my team,’ ” said Schuring, whose two-out double in the sixth scored Becca Coffey (single) and Julissa Akins (hit by pitch).
“I just tried my best and got the hit for my team.”
The Whips (9-3, 5-1 FVC) and Rockets (5-8, 4-3) had almost identical final lines, each team collecting 12 hits and committing three errors in the field. A windy day helped provide three long home runs.
Central junior right fielder Zoe Hornsby smacked a three-run homer to right field in the top of the first inning, and freshman third baseman Alexisa Skarda sent out a two-run shot in the third.
The Rockets led 4-0 after 1½ innings and 6-3 after three.
The Whips, highlighted by a two-run home run to left field by junior shortstop Addi Edlen, sent 11 batters to the plate and scored six runs on seven hits in the bottom of the fourth inning.
No. 9 hitter Jiselle Lopez, who left the game after four innings due to a basketball commitment, had a two-run double in the fourth after she cleared the bases with a three-run triple in the second.
“Up and down our lineup, we’ve got people contributing everyday,” Whips coach Jeremy Bauer said. “Sometimes it’s the top of the order, sometimes it’s middle, sometimes it’s bottom. We’re just happy it can come from anywhere in our lineup at any time.”
“We’ve been down several times this year and come back. We’re not going to give up.”
Central, too, despite giving away two early leads, had the same mentality. The Rockets trailed 11-8 going into the seventh inning but put the first two batters on base with a double by Skarda (2 for 3, three runs, two RBI) and single by Hornsby (2 for 3, two runs, three RBI).
After a groundout, center fielder Madison Butler provided a two-run single and advanced to second on an error. With the tying run on second base, Akins got two groundouts to end the game.
Akins allowed 10 runs (seven earned) on 12 hits while striking out six and walking none. For Central, starter Isabelle Reed allowed nine runs (six earned) on nine hits in 3⅔ innings with a pair of strikeouts and a walk.
First-year coach Jason Edwards said his Rockets have been a resilient bunch.
“What I’ve tried to instill from Day 1, I don’t think there’s been a game this year where we felt like we were out of it no matter what the score is,” he said. “As the season progresses and we try to adapt to new things and having younger players, it’s only going to get better.”
Edlen finished 1 for 4 with a two-run homer for Hampshire, Akins went 2 for 3 with a double and a run scored, and Mia Perez, another freshman for the Whips, had two hits and one RBI. Ali LeBlanc had an RBI single in the fourth.
For Central, Mei Shirokawa was 3 for 4 with two steals, an RBI and a run scored at leadoff. Mia Lundquist had a double and scored once.
The Whips, who are coming off their second straight Larkin Slugfest championship, will look to run their win streak to eight at Cary-Grove on Wednesday before facing FVC leader Huntley at home Thursday.
“We’re collecting a lot of hits together, and our defense has been locked (in),” Edlen said. “Today we were a little bit sloppy, but it happens. We just never give up, and we try as hard as we can. Our conference’s pitching is all over, so you just have to adjust.”
Schuring said her expectations this season have already been surpassed.
“We didn’t really know what to expect because we lost a lot of seniors,” she said. “We have a younger team, but we have a lot of talent. I think we can go far.”