Tippecanoe Valley Held Scoreless In Regional Defeat
May 31, 2023 at 1:34 a.m.
Tippecanoe Valley Held Scoreless In Regional Defeat
By Connor McCann-
The Lady Vikings didn’t accomplish much offensively in the first inning, with the team’s only baserunner coming on a walk drawn by senior Molly Moriarty. It was a solid at bat for the second baseman, who battled back from going down 0-2 to draw the base on balls. Nonetheless, Moriarty would not make it further than first base.
After a phenomenal performance on the mound in the sectional championship, Valley starter Dalynne Bussard ran into some trouble in her first regional inning. The first four Cougars to come to the plate in the bottom of the first would score, with the exclamation point coming on a three-run home run by New Prairie pitcher Ava Geyer. The freshman would find some rhythm after battling through the initial onslaught, recording the first two outs of the inning afterwards.
But the Cougars were not done, putting together a few more timely hits to score two more runs. After an inning, the Lady Vikings trailed 6-0, hoping for a quick answer.
It did not come in the top of the second, as Valley was unable to muster up any offense besides another walk, this one drawn by Maddie Thompson. The game took a scary pause during the inning as New Prairie catcher Makayla Collins took a foul ball off of the face mask and had to leave the game for a moment. She appeared to be okay.
The deficit would grow in the bottom of the second, as the Cougars were able to string together a couple more hits to put two more runners in scoring position. Both would come around and score on a costly error by senior third baseman Abby Bowers, making the score 8-0.
Valley would go down in order in the top of the third, still searching for the team’s first hit of the game.
Bowers came in as a reliever in the third and wasn’t able to do much better against the juggernaut New Prairie offense. The Cougars added two more runs thanks to a few extra base hits and an error, extending their lead to double digits.
While the Lady Vikings were able to make some solid contact in the top of the third, the team still was left searching for its first hit after some even better defense by the Cougars. Moriarty came close to finally putting a hit on the board, but new Cougar catcher Maddie Gilpin made a tremendous diving catch to rob her.
New Prairie, with over 50 home runs hit on the year, added two more in the bottom of the fourth, a solo shot by McKenzie Waltz and a two-run bomb by Makayla Collins on their way to scoring six more runs to really put the game out of reach.
The Lady Vikings finally managed their first hit of the game in the top of the fifth on a slow roller by Anna Shock. That would be all Valley was able to put together in the final inning, as the Cougars were able to close the door with the final out to win the regional title.
Valley will return next season.
The Lady Vikings didn’t accomplish much offensively in the first inning, with the team’s only baserunner coming on a walk drawn by senior Molly Moriarty. It was a solid at bat for the second baseman, who battled back from going down 0-2 to draw the base on balls. Nonetheless, Moriarty would not make it further than first base.
After a phenomenal performance on the mound in the sectional championship, Valley starter Dalynne Bussard ran into some trouble in her first regional inning. The first four Cougars to come to the plate in the bottom of the first would score, with the exclamation point coming on a three-run home run by New Prairie pitcher Ava Geyer. The freshman would find some rhythm after battling through the initial onslaught, recording the first two outs of the inning afterwards.
But the Cougars were not done, putting together a few more timely hits to score two more runs. After an inning, the Lady Vikings trailed 6-0, hoping for a quick answer.
It did not come in the top of the second, as Valley was unable to muster up any offense besides another walk, this one drawn by Maddie Thompson. The game took a scary pause during the inning as New Prairie catcher Makayla Collins took a foul ball off of the face mask and had to leave the game for a moment. She appeared to be okay.
The deficit would grow in the bottom of the second, as the Cougars were able to string together a couple more hits to put two more runners in scoring position. Both would come around and score on a costly error by senior third baseman Abby Bowers, making the score 8-0.
Valley would go down in order in the top of the third, still searching for the team’s first hit of the game.
Bowers came in as a reliever in the third and wasn’t able to do much better against the juggernaut New Prairie offense. The Cougars added two more runs thanks to a few extra base hits and an error, extending their lead to double digits.
While the Lady Vikings were able to make some solid contact in the top of the third, the team still was left searching for its first hit after some even better defense by the Cougars. Moriarty came close to finally putting a hit on the board, but new Cougar catcher Maddie Gilpin made a tremendous diving catch to rob her.
New Prairie, with over 50 home runs hit on the year, added two more in the bottom of the fourth, a solo shot by McKenzie Waltz and a two-run bomb by Makayla Collins on their way to scoring six more runs to really put the game out of reach.
The Lady Vikings finally managed their first hit of the game in the top of the fifth on a slow roller by Anna Shock. That would be all Valley was able to put together in the final inning, as the Cougars were able to close the door with the final out to win the regional title.
Valley will return next season.
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