Late inning rally sends Lady Beaver softball to state

Scott City, Kan. (westernkansasnews.com)–On Tuesday, the Scott City Lady Beaver softball team hosted regional play for the third time in the past four years. They were also searching for their third consecutive birth to state. Standing in the way were a trio of teams from the North Central Kansas League. The Lady Beavers would take care of business, taking down Concordia in the semi-final rund 12-4, and rallied over Chapman in the championship game 4-3, advancing to their third straight state tournament. Chapman advanced to the regional final with an 8-3 win. 

Scott City 12, Concordia 4
In their semi-final game, Scott City would score in five of their six at bats, with three of the innings having three runs scored. The Lady Beavers led 3-0 after the opening frame, and 6-0 after the second frame. Malorie Cupp would drive in runs in the first two innings with a single and a groundout. After they added a run in the bottom of the third to extend their lead to 7-0, they saw Concordia take advantage of an error, and put up two runs with two outs to pull to within 7-2. Their momentum would be short lived, as the Lady Beavers put up three more runs in the fourth inning to extend their lead to 10-2. The Lady Panthers added a solo home run by Kenlee Williams in the sixth, and Scott City added a pair of runs in the bottom of the frame. Concordia scored once more in the seventh to make the final 12-4.

Cheyenne Cramer struck out 12, seven of them looking, and gave up four runs, one earned, on eight hits in seven innings of work. Malorie Cupp and Baylee Wolkensdorfer drove in two runs apiece for the Lady Beavers. Jaylin Roush took the loss for Concordia, giving up 12 runs, three earned, on nine hits. She also had two hits for the Lady Panthers, who closed their season out at 6-17.

Scott City vs Concordia Broadcast

Scott City 4, Chapman 3
Entering the regional championship game, it felt like the game would be a pitchers dual. It lived up to the hype. After a scoreless first two innings, Chapman would be the first to score in the third, as they led off the inning with a double, and scored on an RBI groundout to make it 1-0. The score held up until the sixth inning, when the Irish took advantage of an error, and scored two runs to take a 3-0 lead. When it looked like Scott City had their backs against the wall, the Lady Beavers fought back. All their runs would be scored with two outs. The first came on a two-out single by Piper Fox to pull Scott City to within 3-1. With two on and two out, Kaylee Felker came up clutch with a two-run single to tie the game at three. In the top of the seventh, the Lady Irish got the go ahead run on board with a single. However, the runner would be called out for leaving the base too early. In the bottom of the seventh, the Lady Beavers got a one-out double from Malorie Cupp. She stole third and with two outs on a 1-2 count, a passed ball allowed her to score, and send Scott City to state in walk-off fashion with a 4-3 victory. 

Cheyenne Cramer struck out 12 in seven innings, with seven caught looking. She scattered three hits and gave up three runs, one earned. Kaylee Felker had two RBI in the win. Madalynn Harold took the loss, giving up four runs, three earned, on seven hits, with nine strikeouts. Chapman ended their year at 14-10.

Scott City vs Chapman Broadcast

Drew Kite Postgame

Scott City will likely be the top seed in the Class 4A State Tournament, as they will play on Thursday & Friday, May 23-24 at Salina South High School. It’s the third straight year the Lady Beavers have qualified for the state tournament, and the first in Class 4A. Those are the only state tournament berths.