Rounding out a victorious week, the Bearcat softball team took two wins against the Spearville High School Lancers April 19 at home. The first game ended 11-3, and the Cats won by run rule in the second, 13-3.

Throughout the duration of the first game, Ellsworth dominated defensively. Ensuring to make clean plays on defense allowed them a chance to take over on offense.

In the first inning, however, Spearville loaded up the bases with only one out. This provided pressure for the Bearcat defense, but they came out victorious. Senior Emma Moore struck out the next batter, and senior Paityn Tenbrink sealed the third out by fielding a grounder at first base.

Holding the Lancers at 0 points in the first inning allowed the Cats to start their bats strong. Moore led off, putting up a battle in the box and eventually getting walked on a full count. Senior Peyton Coonrod followed up with a bunt that earned her a triple off errors and batted Moore home for the first run of the game.

After senior Isabelle Lindsley grounded a ball to the outfield, Coonrod was batted in to add the second point to the board. While these were the only two scores in the first inning, Ellsworth still proved their strong start.

With two early strikeouts in the second inning, the Lancers were only allowed one base runner. After a ball was hit to sophomore Johanna Lindsley at shortstop, she threw the batter out at first to earn the third out and send the team back to offense.

While the Bearcats did not score in the second inning, they held their lead of 2-0.

By the third inning, despite Spearville scoring their first run of the game, the Cats’ bats had come alive. Knocking singles to move around the bases allowed the team an 8-1 lead by the end of the inning.

The Cats were unable to stretch their lead quite far enough to win in a run rule, but still came away with an 11-3 win at the end of the seventh inning.

The momentum the Bearcats gained in the first game carried into the second.

Starting the game out with a catch in center field, the Cats then had a bit of a struggle to seal the next two outs. On a single followed by a steal home, the Lancers scored 2 runs in the first inning. However, Ellsworth did not let this discourage them. Instead, they worked harder to gain back their lead.

Moore started out with a walk, but did not make it home. After a strikeout and two caught balls, the inning ended with the Bearcats trailing 2-0.

With two outs on the board, sophomore Kelli Rodriguez pitched a passed ball. With a runner stealing home from third base, sophomore catcher Alexis Moore retrieved the ball and Rodriguez tagged the runner out at home to hold the Lancers.

On offense, the Bearcats battled their way back, scoring four runs in the second inning. They continued to stretch their lead throughout the remainder of the game, and by the bottom of the sixth, they led 13-3, a lead of over 10, allowing the team a run rule win.

The team will play at home against Southeast of Saline April 30.