Spring break began on Friday, March 16th, but the Lady Bulldogs softball team still had some work to do as they competed in the Fayetteville-Farmington Fastpitch Invitational tournament on Saturday the 17th. Unfortunately for the GHS girls, they lost two of three games against opponents Farmington, Gentry, and Fort Smith Southside. None of the three games went seven innings, due to time constraints. The event was played in Fayetteville.
Greenwood’s Brooke Kiene doubled in the top half of the first inning in Friday’s opening contest, but it wasn't enough to get past Farmington, as the Lady Bulldogs lost 4-0 in five innings. Farmington scored three runs in the bottom of the first inning to take an early lead. Farmington's pitching kept Greenwood off the scoreboard for all five innings, striking out six GHS batters.
Farmington added an unneeded insurance run in the fourth inning and had a total of seven hits for the game to five for Greenwood. On defense, both teams played errorless ball before the clock forced an early end to the action following Greenwood’s at bat in the top of the fifth inning.
In their second game, the Lady Bulldogs outlasted Gentry, squeaking out a narrow 3-2 win. Greenwood pulled out the win thanks to a strong fourth inning, after trailing 2-1. Gentry scored once in the first frame, and again in the top of the fourth to account for its lead.
GHS pitcher Jordan Mahan was a workhorse in the circle while earning the win for Greenwood. She pitched six innings and allowed one earned run, five hits, and gave one walk while striking out three hitters. The Lady Bulldogs scored once in the third inning and twice in the fourth, before holding on for the win.
Batters Audra Schluterman, Allie Barnes, Kameron Brewer, Jade Pate, Mariko McCraney, Brooke Kiene, and Stephanie Brown each got hits for Greenwood, which had a total of nine hits in five innings. The defense for both teams was also a little iffy with a total of five errors - two for Gentry and three for Greenwood.
Greenwood’s final game in the tournament pitted them against a familiar foe in Fort Smith Southside, a team the Lady Bulldogs had beaten earlier this season. But this time the Lady Rebels got the upper hand in a truncated game that lasted just four innings due to tournament time constraints. Southside took the lead for the last time in the fourth inning and held on for the 7-6 victory.
Brooke Kiene reached base twice for Greenwood, including a triple in the first inning. Barnes, Schulterman and Abbey Lejong also had two hits each. After Kiene’s first inning triple, Allie Barnes singled, driving home the game’s first run. But the Lady Rebs countered with two runs in the bottom half of the inning as the game turned into a seesaw battle. Greenwood scored four times in the second and added a single run in the top of the fourth inning to account for its six runs. Southside added a single run in the second and two more in both the third and fourth frames before the game was halted. Both teams had 10 hits and committed one error each.
The Lady Bulldogs are slated to return to action when school resumes on Monday, March 26th, against Fort Smith Northside. The game will be at home with a 4:30 p.m. start time. They will also host Morrilton in 5A West Conference play on Tuesday, also at 4:30.