Grayson Softball returned to McLennan for the Highlander games yesterday Feb. 6 and came away with a sweep, pushing their record to 5-1 on the year.
Game one
The Vikings opened the day with an 8-0 run rule victory in six innings over Indian Hills with Natalie Moreaux tying a school record with 13 strikeouts.
In the first inning, Layla Sons got the scoring started with a two out RBI single, scoring Jaclyn Draeger, who doubled earlier in the inning. In the second inning, Paisley Needham hit a one out double, scoring on an RBI single from Maile Larsen for a 2-0 lead. After an Aniyah Pequeno single, Matti Matthews drove in a run with a single and Pequeno would later score on a wild pitch to make it 4-0, where the score would remain until the sixth inning.
In the sixth inning, Needham led off with a single and Erin Smith was hit by a pitch. Pequeno, Matthews and Carolyn Koval all followed with RBI doubles to increase the lead to 7-0. Later in the inning, Addisyn Cox ended the game with a two out RBI single.
Offensively, Pequeno, Matthews, Sons and Needham all recorded multi-hit games. Matthews drove in a pair to lead the team offensively.
In the circle, Moreaux tossed a two hitter to go along with the 13 strikeouts.
Game two
The Vikings finished with a 5-3 victory over Southeastern Community College.
After a scoreless first inning, Erin Smith hit a two out single and Maile Larsen followed with a two run homer and a 2-0 lead in the second inning.
An RBI double in the top of the fourth inning from Southeastern's Anna Woods cut the lead in half, but Larsen's second two run homer of the game in the bottom half of the fourth, extended the lead to 4-1. Woods drove in her second run with a single in the sixth inning for Southeastern. Jaimee Bolduc plated a run with a fielder's choice to cut the lead to 4-3. Kynnedy Guthrie came out of the bullpen to induce a first pitch ground ball to end the inning.
The Vikings added an insurance run in the bottom of the sixth on an RBI Single from Jaclyn Draeger, scoring Matti Matthews who hit a two out double.
Moreaux worked out of a jam in the seventh inning, stranding two runners to preserve the win.
The Vikings tallied 11 hits as a team, with Matthews leading the way with three. Larsen also had a multi-hit game with two hits.
The Vikings will return home for their home opener, taking on Northeast Texas Community College on Monday, Feb. 9. Doubleheader action begins at 1pm from Viking Softball Field.
