SPRINGDALE — When it seemed like there was no way a home run would be hit Tuesday afternoon, Alicia Lowrey had to prove the elements wrong.
The Bentonville third baseman circled the bases after two Springdale Har-Ber outfielders collided in an attempt to catch her drive to right-center field, and the Lady Tigers went on to post a 5-2 victory in the 7A/6A-West Conference softball opener for both teams at J.B. Hunt Park.
BENTONVILLE 5, SPRINGDALE HAR-BER 2
Bentonville^000^302^0^—^5^7^5
Har-Ber^100^010^0^—^2^4^3
Vaughan and Fears; Stockalper, Bogle (4), Stockalper (6) and Ray. W-Vaughan, 3-0. L-Stockalper, 3-1. Sv-None. HR-Bentonville, Lowrey (1).
Lowery's shot off Emily Stockalper (3-1) was one of the few outfield hits that had any distance, thanks to a stiff wind that blew throughout most of the game. Centerfielder Hannah Sharum and rightfielder Sarah Strictland gave chase, only to meet head-on as the ball rolled away and allowed Lowery to score, giving Bentonville (3-0, 1-0) a 4-2 lead.
"We hit it deep enough to where we could score on it," Bentonville coach Kent Early said. "We fell behind early, but our kids competed out there and battled. When we had to make the plays, we did and that's what counts.
"We made some errors and put ourselves in some tough situations. But we're excited about this one, and the kids never quit. They stayed after it, and that's all you can ask."
The Lady Tigers added a run later in the inning when Mackenzie Hardison singled and later scored on a wild pitch, and Morgan Vaughan (3-0) made it stand. The senior right-hander only allowed a one-out double by Marissa Davis in the seventh.
This came after she pitched out of a fourth-inning jam and kept Bentonville in front after Gracie Bogle's single drove in Davis and made it a 3-2 game. Har-Ber (5-2, 0-1) had runners on second and third with one out, but Lady Tigers shortstop Payton Wildeman made two big plays -- an over-the-shoulder catch of a pop fly by Tiffani Ray, then a scoop of Kylie Buttram's grounder and throwing to first to end the inning.
"It seemed like we were having to chase them the whole night," Har-Ber coach Lynn Lawson said. "Morgan Vaughan, she commanded the circle. She was in and out, and her control was excellent. She's the top-notch pitcher in the conference right now.
"We never put enough consistent back-to-back hits together, in my opinion. There were at least two or three times where we left runners in scoring position, and you can't do that. If you do that, you won't win games."
Both outfielders laid on the ground for a few moments, then left the field and never returned. Lawson said Strictland suffered a separated shoulder and would be examined by a doctor today, while Sharum reportedly had a gash above her eye re-opened as a result of the collision.
Sports on 03/19/2014