For The Tribune
BROWNSTOWN
The Brownstown Central softball team found a new way to pull out a win against Orleans on Friday afternoon.
The Braves opened up a 5-1 lead after three innings, had some mental lapses on defense that allowed the Bulldogs to tie the game, then received a two-run home run from Brooke Ebbing in the sixth inning for a 7-5 victory.
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“It was a good day,” Braves coach Monte Ault said. “When you get 10 hits you should win the game. I think we’re going to score runs. We’ve got pretty good hitters, and we’ve got some home run hitters in the lineup.”
The Braves got the offense going early as Beth Wayman opened the bottom of the first with a single, and Ebbing reached base safely on a fielder’s choice.
Kourtney Branaman was safe on another fielder’s choice with Wayman scoring, and Lisa Scott singled to score Ebbing.
Wayman walked in the second and scored when Ebbing was safe on an error.
Home runs accounted for the Braves’ final four runs. Maeliegh Tidd doubled in the third and came home on Scott’s second homer of the season, over the fence in left center.
Morgan Wehmiller came up to pinch hit in the sixth and beat out a bunt.
Ebbing blasted her third home run of the season, over the fence in right-center for the win.
Scott had three hits, while Wayman had two, and five other Braves had one each.
“Lisa Scott came out of her slump,” Ault said. “She made a nice play at shortstop. We didn’t lose our composure. We came back, and Ebbing kind of redeemed herself hitting the home run.”
It was the defense — three errors — that left Ault concerned.
Two of the errors came in the fifth inning when the Bulldogs scored three unearned runs.
“We should have been out of the inning,” Ault said. “It was probably the worst defensive game we’ve had.
“On fly balls between the first baseman and the catcher, the first baseman has priority. And Brooke Ebbing hardly ever drop a fly ball and they got two runs after that. We’ve got to make those kind of plays.”
Jami Bryant pitched the first 51/3 innings and had five strike outs while giving up 10 hits, and Branaman finished up and retired all five batters she faced.
“I thought Kourtney came in and did a nice job of pitching,” Ault said. “I thought Jami didn’t do too bad a job of pitching. She kind of got it up and they hit it (10 hits).”
The Braves are 11-1 while the Bulldogs fell to 3-3.