Kelly stays perfect, slips past Central

BENTON, Mo. -- Natalie Lewer tossed a two-hit gem to lead the Kelly girls softball team to a 2-0 win over Cape Central Wednesday afternoon.

The shutout in the SEMO Conference matchup kept Kelly's record unblemished at 5-0, 2-0 in the conference. Cape Central fell to 5-6, 1-2 in conference games, both losses to the Lady Hawks.

"We did what it takes to win," said Kelly coach Melanie Heuring. "Natalie was great on the mound, our defense was solid and we got timely hits to get the runs we needed."

The Lady Hawks, who finished third in the Class 2A state tournament last season, got on the board with a run in the second inning.

All-state first baseman Bridgett Riley worked Holly Schnursbusch, the Lady Tiger hurler, for a walk after falling behind in the count two strikes and no balls. Riley then stole second, advanced to third on an infield single by Allison Johnson and scored on an RBI single by Cara Scherer.

Kelly added an unearned insurance run in the fourth frame.

Scherer's two-out single preceded a throwing error by Lady Tiger third baseman Trisha Klipfel on a putout attempt at first base on Sara Essner's grounder. Scherer moved to third on the miscue and scored on a base hit by Monica Senciboy.

Meanwhile, Lewer dominated the Lady Tiger offense, not allowing a runner past second base.

"I can't believe I got to pitch today and I'm very glad I did," said Lewer, who thought she might be pushed back in the rotation for today's game with Ste. Genevieve. "I pitched against them (Cape) in the first game and did really, really good."

Lewer was justifiably pleased with her effort in this outing. She struck out eight and walked none.

"I've struggled with walks, so I was happy I didn't have any today," ahe said.

Cape Central's Schnurbusch was effective on the hill, also, as she allowed six hits, struck out five and walked only one.

Not discouraged by her team's lack of offense, Cape Central coach Amy Blattel said, "We'll be okay. I'm not real concerned. Right now, our hitting problems are mostly mental."

Alex Wieser and Samantha Elliott accounted for the Lady Tiger hits.

Kelly's JV won 14-3 with Whitney Beggs picking up the win.