Columbus East second baseman Kaylee Cole, right, catches a pop-fly as center fielder Savanna Sullivan looks on against Edinburgh at Columbus East, Tuesday, March 28, 2023.
Paige Grider | For The Republic
A mix of the old and new helped get the softball season started on the right foot for Columbus East on Tuesday.
The Olympians overcame an early three-run deficit and a 4-4 tie after 2 1/2 innings by scoring 13 times in their final two trips to the plate in a 17-6, five-inning victory against Edinburgh.
“I think we did a good job the second time through the lineup adjusting to their pitcher,” East senior shortstop Kenzie Foster said. “The first time, we were a little rough, but after that, I thought we did a good job of adjusting and putting the ball where nobody was.”
Foster, a Syracuse commit, did her damage from the top of the lineup. She went 2 for 3 with a two-run inside-the-park home run in the second. Bowling Green commit Kaylee Cole went 2 for 4 with a triple from the No. 2 spot, and cleanup hitter Addy Ross went 2 for 3 with a double and two RBIs.
If the play of three newcomers is any indication of things to come, the Olympians might be in line for a stellar season. Junior Greensburg transfer Hermione Robinson overcame allowing three runs in the first to limit the Lancers (1-2) to one run on two hits over the next three innings and also homered at the plate. Senior catcher Maryn Mayes, a transfer from Columbus North, went 2 for 3 with a double and four RBIs, and freshman Mackenzie Hampton went 2 for 3.
“I’m very proud of how we played for the first game,” Foster said. “We had a lot of new girls, and I thought we played well together. Now that the first-game jitters are out of the way, I’m really excited to see how the rest of the season goes.”
Edinburgh greeted Robinson with three runs in the top of the first, capped by a two-run homer to left by freshman Eloise Cox. East scored two off MacKenzie Bieker in the bottom of the first, highlighted by an RBI-triple from Cole, then took the lead with two in the second on Foster’s home run.
The Lancers tied it on an RBI-groundout by Cox in the third, but then Robinson led off the bottom of the third with a homer and the first five Olympians recorded hits, capped by a two-run double by Mayes, who sat out last season.
“I was really nervous at first, but I came up the second time, and I was really happy about it,” Mayes said. “It’s amazing. I missed it a lot. It’s really exciting but we can’t settle. We have to keep going. We have a lot of games ahead of us.”
Mayes’ hit brought on a pitching change from Bieker to Cox. East ended up scoring six runs in that third and added seven in the fourth to take a 17-4 lead.
“I think we played well in the first part of that game, but once we made the pitching change in there, they had started timing up Mac,” Edinburgh coach Ben Taylor said. “At that point, it’s just hitting experience, and letting them see different things. But we’re pretty happy with what we were able to do today.”
Edinburgh reached Olympians reliever Megan Kennedy for a two-run single by Bieker in the fifth, but couldn’t avoid the 10-run rule.
“Hermione did a nice job pitching for us,” East coach Rusty Brummett said. “Megan came in and did a nice job pitching for us. The first game of the year, you tend to have a little more adrenaline, maybe try to overthrow, so a ball that’s moving isn’t going to move as much because you’re overthrowing. So I think once Hermione settled down, she started taking care of business. She did a nice job. She’s going to be a nice addition to our program.”
East finished with 13 hits and did not commit an error.
“Offensively, that’s what we do,” Brummett said. “We’re doing the right thing. Defensively, I don’t remember any errors. I always talk about the three phases of the game — pitching, hitting and defense. Hitting came through and did really well against a good pitcher. Then, pitching, we did a good job. The top of their order is very good, and then defensively, we didn’t have any errors. We kept the ball in front of us and were making plays to win a ballgame.”
Kenna Streeval went 3 for 3 to record half of the Lancers’ six hits. Bieker and Cox each had three RBIs.
“I think with the number of freshmen we have and an inexperienced outfield, we’re seeing the strides that we need to see,” Taylor said. “Hitting, we had some good contact.”
“Edinburgh is a quality program,” Brummett added. “They’re going to do a lot of damage in their conference and the tournament in 1A. Bieker is a great pitcher. They’re going to be good.”
