Seymour’s softball team came up with an unearned run in the bottom of the fifth inning to break a 4-4 tie and post a 5-4 win against Brownstown Central on the Owls’ field Friday afternoon.
With one out in the fifth, Faith Rebber hit a fly to center that Beth Wayman was unable to keep in her glove for a two-base error.
The Owls’ Lo Schmidt then hit a sinking line drive into short lef- center field that Wayman got a glove on, but couldn’t control when she hit the ground and rolled over.
Avery Clark grounded out to third base as Rebber raced home with the deciding run.
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The Braves got off to a strong start as Wayman led off the game with a home run over the fence in left center.
Brooke Ebbing followed with a walk, but the next batter hit into a double play, and the next batter popped out to end the inning.
The Braves doubled their lead in the third when Morgan Wehmiller singled and scored on a single by Ebbing.
Seymour’s Emily Bobb hit a triple into right-center field in the bottom of the third and scored on a wild pitch for a 2-1 score.
The Owls put together their best rally of the night in the fourth when Schmidt, Clark and McKenna Curry singled to load the bases with no outs. Katie Suits grounded out to third as Schmidt scored the first run. Bobb doubled over the third baseman’s head to drive in Clark and Curry for a 4-2 lead.
The Braves tied the game in the fifth as Wayman started the rally by reaching first base safely on an error by the third baseman. Ebbing singled with Wayman going to third on the play.
When Ebbing stole second, Wayman raced home on the play to make it a 4-3 game. Maeleigh Tidd hit a fly ball to left field that brought in Ebbing to tie the score.
Seymour coach Brian Personett credited the win to good defense, while Braves coach Monte Ault blamed the loss on the inability to get hits in the clutch.
The Owls turned double plays in the first and second innings, and Personett said the 1-6-3 twin killing in the first inning was big and prevented the Braves from having a big inning.
“The team seems to go the way we play defense, and tonight we showed it defensively. We seem to feed off that,” Personett said. “We hit pretty well when we had to. We strung a few hits together there in the fourth inning and scored three runs. I think the key for us is to play well defensively, and when we play defense we seem to hit.
The Owls (7-5) had seven hits with Bobb getting a double and triple, she scored one run and had two RBI, and Schmidt had two hits.
The Braves left six runners on base.
“The main thing is we didn’t get hits when we had runners in scoring position,” Ault said. “We did the same thing (Thursday at Corydon. Thursday) we had bases loaded two or three times with one out and didn’t get any runners in. Tonight we had runners on first and second and no outs or one out and didn’t get the big hit.”
Ault complimented Bailey Bonebright for getting a hit in her first game of the Spring, and for Morgan Wehmiller getting a hit and laying down a sacrifice bunt.
The Braves had seven hits with Ebbing getting two, while Wayman was on base three times with a hit, a walk and by error.
Ault said Brownstown (13-3) needs to play solid defense and get hits in key situations beginning with today’s home game against Indian Creek.