Coming off an emotional win at crosstown rival Columbus East on Monday and heading into a Saturday doubleheader against Class 4A No. 2 Center Grove and 4A No. 5 Bedford North Lawrence, Tuesday night’s contest against Bloomington North had all the makings of a trap game for 4A No. 3 Columbus North.
The first half of the game played out that way. The Cougars led 3-0 after three innings before the Bull Dogs rallied for a 13-3, six-inning Conference Indiana victory.
“I’d say it was coming down from (Monday) night,” Columbus North coach Ron McDonald said. “We were looking forward to the Center Grove game, and we can’t take anybody lightly. They’re a good team. I think we just looked past them. We came out a little slow tonight, but once we started getting it going, we were fine. I think we’re a team of destiny.”
Bloomington North scored three times on two home runs in the third off Bull Dog freshman Payton Morris. Columbus North finally got on the board in the fourth on singles by Josie Lemmons and Kelsey Lovelace, a two-run double by Maddi Rutan, an RBI-fielders choice by Bailey King and an RBI-single by Miley McClellan to take a 4-3 lead.
Rutan, the Bull Dogs ace who was coming off back-to-back complete-game one-hitters on Saturday and Monday, came on in the top of the sixth and pitched her way out of a second-and-third-jam to preserve the lead. Columbus North (8-0-1, 2-0) then exploded for nine runs in the bottom of the sixth to put it away.
Kirsten Danford led off the sixth by reaching on an error, then went to second on a walk and came home when King singled and the throw to first went to the fence. With one out, McClellan reached on another error, and Kaylee Cowan walked to load the bases. Freshman Morgan Jarvis then unloaded a grand-slam — the first home run of her career — to right -center to push the lead to 9-3.
“It was awesome,” McDonald said. “As soon as she hit it, it was gone.”
The Bull Dogs weren’t done. With two out, Lovelace doubled, Rutan walked and Danford delivered a two-run double. King followed with an RBI single, and after Morris doubled her to third, King came home with the clinching run when McClellan reached on an error.
Lovelace finished 3 for 4 for Columbus North. Danford went 2 for 3 with a double and two RBIs, King went 2 for 4 with two RBIs, Rutan had two RBIs and Jarvis had four RBIs on the grand-slam.
