SOUTH WHITLEY — The Whitko softball team defended its home turf Wednesday night against the Tippecanoe Valley Lady Vikings. In the Three Rivers Conference opener for both teams, Whitko came out on top 9-1. Valley got things started with a run in the first when Kieli Perkins drove in Danielle Adams, but Whitko came back in third. Down 1-0, Whitko’s Hannah Cokl led the third off by reaching on an error and later came around to score, as did Karissa Olinske two batters later to take the 2-1 lead. Clinging to the one-run lead, Olinske put the Lady Vikings away in order in the top of the fourth, then the Whitko offense blew the top off things. In their half of the fourth, the Lady Wildcats batted through the order, plating six runs, with those coming from Aly Nicodemus, Emily Weigold, Cokl, Olinske, Audra Day and Hannah Himes. Whitko’s offensive burst gave Valley a deficit it couldn’t battled back from, as the Lady Wildcats added another run in the sixth, resulting in the final 9-1 score. On top of going 2 for 4 at the plate, Olinske was the winning pitcher, going all seven innings and striking out nine. Also for Whitko, Himes went 1 for 3 with a double. In defeat, Valley was paced by Perkins’ 2-for-3 day, which featured a double and the RBI. Whitko is back in action today at Homestead, while Valley’s next contest is Saturday at its own invitational, which will also feature Whitko.
WHITKO 9, TIPPECANOE VALLEY 1 TV 100 000 0 – 1 7 5 W 002 601 x – 9 7 1 Karissa Olinske (W, 7IP, 9K, 1BB, 7H, 1R, 1ER, 1HB) and Hannah Himes; Kassidy Shepherd (L, 6IP, 7H, 9R, 8ER, 4BB) and Darian Dotson 2B – Himes (W), Kieli Perkins (TV) Records: Whitko 1-0 TRC, Tippy Valley 5-8 (0-1 TRC)
