ROCKINGHAM — Ten was the magic number for the Richmond Senior High School junior varsity softball team Friday.
The JV Lady Raiders extended their winning streak to 10 games while using a pair of 10-run innings to defeat Hoke County High School.
Earning another season series sweep against a Mid-South Conference opponent, Richmond mercy-ruled the JV Lady Bucks 20-3 in three innings.
Freshman Grace Hill got the win in the circle, pitching all three innings. She allowed three runs (one earned) on one hit and had four strikeouts.
It was a productive day for freshmen Kaydence Cooke and Haylee McCaskill, both of whom finished with a game-high three runs batted in. Both had a triple and McCaskill added a single.
Sophomore Abby Hinson tacked on a pair of RBI to go along with her one double, and sophomore Annabelle Millen had two singles and one RBI.
A total of nine players recorded at least one RBI in the win. The others were Hill, sophomore Kaylee Connor, and freshmen Lyra Newton, Autumn Cooper and Makenzie Mabe.
Hoke County scored one run in all three innings and led 1-0 after the top of the first frame.
Newton got the scoring started with a double with one out in the first and later scored to make it 2-1. Sophomore Liz Luncefored (walk) scored from third on a passed ball.
Two more runs scored when McCaskill reached on an error, which brought in Cooper (courtesy runner) and Cooke (walk). Leading 5-1, back-to-back RBI singles by Hill and Millen extended the lead to six runs.
Before the third out was recorded, Hill scored on a wild pitch and Hinson roped a two-RBI double to plate Millen and Newton (hit-by-pitch) to build the lead to 10-1.
The JV Lady Bucks scored another run in the top of the second before the JV Lady Raiders plated 10 more runs in the bottom half.
Leadoff walks to freshman Ava Parks and Cooke led to two runs when McCaskill connected for a two-RBI triple and slid safely into third base. A passed ball a pitch later gave McCaskill time to race home.
An RBI base knock by Newton scored freshman Jasey Braddock (HBP) with one out. Leading 14-2, an RBI single by Mabe put the JV Lady Raiders up by 13 runs.
Richmond’s final five runs came with two outs. First, Cooke cleared the bases with a three-RBI triple to bring in Cooper, Hinson (walk) and Mabe.
McCaskill capped her big game with a line drive single to right field to score Cooke. For good measure, Connor barreled up an RBI double to the gap to score McCaskill for Richmond’s 20th run.
After Hoke County scored its last run on a passed ball with one out, Hill got a pair of strikeouts against two of the next three batters to end the game.
The JV Lady Raiders (11-1, 5-0 MSC) will return to play Tuesday at home against Overhills High School. The game will start at 4:30 p.m.
Sports editor’s note: Game information and statistics provided by Richmond’s GameChanger.
