Powell fans two to secure victory for Kelly in softball sectional

BENTON, Mo. -- Kelly starting pitcher Kristen Powell delivered two of the Hawks' biggest outs this season when the team needed them most Wednesday.

Powell found herself in a bind when an illegal pitch moved the tying run from second to third base with one out in the seventh inning of a Class 2 sectional softball game.

But Powell managed to keep her composure.

Powell struck out East Carter's Kimberly Shaffer swinging before catching Lanna Shaffer looking for a called third strike to send the Hawks to the state quarterfinals with a 2-1 victory.

"She couldn't really catch up, so I just kept throwing fastballs," Powell said of getting the final out. "I kept it off the plate and it worked."

Kelly catcher Kristen Vetter fields a ground ball and prepares to fire to first base during Wednesday's Class 2 sectional game in Benton, Mo. (BRENT SHIPMAN ~ Sikeston Standard Democrat)

Having to hold a lead late was a bit of a role reversal for Kelly. The Hawks were the ones forced to come from behind in the late innings of each of their last two district tournament wins.

Kelly was able to make sure that wouldn't be the case this time around after it scored back-to-back runs in the first and second innings.

Freshman Jade Rampley gave her team the early spark it needed when she hit a two-out shot just over the right fielder's head that slowly rolled to the fence.

Rampley turned on the afterburners and cruised around the base paths before sliding into home for an inside-the-park home run.

Powell helped herself in the second inning. She scored on a wild pitch to give her team a 2-0 lead.

"It's good to pounce on top first, because if you don't, you'll usually be playing from behind," Rampley said.

Kelly's defense managed to hold the Cardinals scoreless until East Carter's No. 3 hitter Mariah Randazzo crossed the plate in the sixth to cut the deficit in half.

Randazzo reached on a fielder's choice and found her way home shortly after Kelen Smith hit her second double of the night. Randazzo reached third on the hit before taking home when an errant pickoff attempt ended up in the outfield.

Things got interesting in the seventh when Courtney Marler led off with a double for East Carter. But Powell got Ashley Christman to pop up to the catcher before her two strikeouts to seal her team's victory.

"We still can't get our hitting quite down quite like I want," Heuring said. "But at least good defense will win a lot of ballgames for you."

Kelly advanced to Saturday's quarterfinals. The Hawks will play at Hartville, an 12-11 winner over Dixon.

Kelly 110 000 0 -- 2

East Carter 000 001 0 -- 1

WP -- Kristen Powell. LP -- Courtney Newman. HR -- Jade Rampley (K). 2B -- Kelen Smith 2 (EC), Faith Eaves (EC), Courtney Marler (EC).