A sunny and 75 degree Monday afternoon was a perfect setting for the Lady Lions Fastpitch home game against Watonga. The Lions were in it the whole game, but a bad fifth inning in the field cost them them with the score at the end of the seventh at 9-6 for Watonga.
In the first inning, Watonga ran three home, but good plays from Sarah Bolner at pitcher kept them from going home in the second inning. She stopped a short bunt and threw the runner out at first. Then she stopped a grounder and threw home to get a force out. Finally, she struck out the last batter.
The third inning let Watonga score two; but brought the Lions luck at bat. Hannah Trenary hit a hard ball and their second baseman couldn’t catch it, allowing Sydney Jones on base to run home. Right after that, Kennedy Cox rocked one to left field for a double, and Trenary ran home. Two more hits from Gracie Tytenicz and Kuhlman sent Cox home to make the score 5-3.
Three grounder stops from Kuhlman, Sarah Bolner and Tytenicz in the fourth inning kept the Watonga score at five runs, and an RBI bunt from Kacie Bolner sent her sister Sarah Bolner home to put the Lions right behind Watonga with four runs.
Then came the Lions’ downfall. It started out well; Sarah Bolner and Kuhlman caught pop flies. When a third pop fly was hit, three Lions, Sydney Jones, Kinlee Jones and Kacie Bolner, ran for it and collided. Kinlee Jones went out of the game and suffered a broken wrist. After that Watonga scored four runs that inning. Kacie Bolner caught a pop fly to get the last out.
At bat, the Lions tried to redeem themselves. Cox, Tytenicz, Brielle Whittaker and Sarah Bolner all hit the ball, and Cox and Tytenicz made it home.
That was the end of the runs for the game, but the Lions still had some fielding in them.
In the sixth, Kuhlman wowed the audience by getting all three outs in two plays. She caught a pop fly in the first play. Then she stopped a grounder, tagged a runner and threw the force out at first base.
In the seventh inning, Kuhlman made another grounder stop at second for an out. Kacie Bolner caught a pop fly at short stop and Tytenicz made a ground stop at third base for the third out.
Kinlee Jones is in a soft cast and sling with a broken ulna and radius. She said surgery might be required but it will be a week before determining that. She has her chin up and went to school Tuesday; but will miss the end of this softball season and will be out for cheer for a while.
The Lions play at Crescent Tuesday, then travel to Crossings Christian Thursday for a makeup doubleheader.
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