Daylin Oakes had an interesting mindset when he hit the ball Thursday in the Morrison Softball League. He wasn’t going to stop running until he scored.
Oakes had two inside-the-park HRs, sliding into home plate both times, to help High’s Funeral Home to a 21-6 win over Allgas in the Senior League.
It was an all-around impressive win for High’s, which buried Allgas thanks to a lineup of power hitters and an infield which could make plays. Pitcher Brienne Kelsey showed her gazelle-like reflexes by snagging one come-backer and making the throw to first.
Allgas tried to stay above ground behind the bat of Noah Bain, who hit a towering double to left field in the fourth inning. The Allgas crew also benefitted from some snazzy plays in the field.
Left-fielder Marlin Gray made a nice catch when he tracked down a fly ball, but it popped out of his glove and looked like it might hit the ground. But Gray had the wherewithal to grab the ball with his other hand to record the out.
Despite a few nice defensive plays from Allgas, the overall results were grave. High’s came alive in the third inning as Ethan Hall blasted a shot to the outfield to help the team to an 8-3 lead.
In the fourth inning, Hall stretched a hard line drive into an inside-the-park HR, barely dodging a tag by Allgas pitcher Levi Jones just before the plate. The Allgas defense then got a little shaky as some balls were misplayed in the infield and outfield that allowed High’s to forge ahead, 16-4.
Tara Bumpus provided the exclamation point for High’s in the fifth with a triple on the way to a 21-6 win. High’s has only lost once this season.
In the Youth League, McMinnville Funeral Home laid to rest any thoughts it might suffer its first defeat with a convincing 22-3 win over One and Done Home Improvement.
McMinnville Funeral Home made arrangements for plenty of scoring and combined it with lockdown defense, highlighted by the play of pitcher Isaiah Robledo, who scooped up everything that came his way.
Kennedy Ramsey drove in a run with a big hit in the third inning and Dawson Betancourt added an RBI double to left as McMinnville Funeral Home took a 19-3 lead.
The team was fiercely aggressive on the bases as Kristopher Robledo tagged up from 3B and scored on a pop fly to shortstop. Kristopher and Isaiah both smashed inside-the-park HRs.
Action was just as exciting on the T-ball field as Cumberland Valley Nursery squared off against Bryan Livestock.
The game was marked by a bang-bang play at the plate as Jayden Gum tried to scamper home to score a run for Bryan Livestock. But Braxton Johnson had other ideas. Braxton gloved a ground ball, saw Jayden was trying to make it home, and just barely won a foot race to the plate.
Nash Dearth lived up to his duties as last batter by smashing a HR for Cumberland Valley Nursery. He flashed a smile that shows he’s missing his front teeth as he made his way down the third-base line and prepared to score.
