Caydee Farnworth winds up to throw against Reed in the opening round of the regional softball tournament Thursday afternoon at Bishop Manogue.
Photo by Carter Eckl.
Carson High softball let the opening round of the Class 5A regional tournament get away from them Thursday afternoon. With a 2-1 lead heading into the seventh, No. 5 Reed scored a run in the seventh and in the eighth to escape with a 3-2 win. The regional tournament is double elimination, pushing the fourth-seeded Senators into the consolation bracket with another game Thursday evening. Against No. 8 Galena, Carson used a three-run first inning to carry out a 5-3 victory keeping the Senators alive for day two. Friday at 2:30 p.m., Carson will play the loser of No. 2 Douglas and No. 3 McQueen, which will be the earlier game on Bishop Manogue’s field two. “We had to be better in all aspects of the game,” said Carson High head coach Scott Vickrey, on his message to the team following the first loss. “We just had to hit the ball and stop leaving runners on base.”
(Zadee Gitthens lines an RBI single to center field in the third inning of Carson's regional opener against Reed. Gitthens went 1-for-3. / Carter Eckl)
Opening round highlights Down 1-0 in the bottom of the second inning, Isabella Reyes singled in Kayce Johnston with base knock to center field. Johnston went 3-for-4 in the first game. In the third, it was sophomore Zadee Gitthens with an RBI single to center, driving in Kiele Franco. Caydee Farnworth pitched all eight innings and posted nine strikeouts to one walk while giving up two earned runs. Farnworth was 2-for-4 at the plate. Reed scored the game-winning run on a flyout followed by an errant throw in the eighth. Besting the Grizzlies A three-run first inning may have eased any nerves for Carson in the consolation game. A loss now ends Carson’s season, but in the home half of the first Farnworth got the offense jumpstarted with an RBI single to left. Reyes drove in a run in the next at-bat with a single through the infield before Rhys Branham tacked on a third run on a sacrifice fly. In the third, Reyes struck again with an RBI single to center field, scoring Corine Doran. Reyes and Farnworth each tallied multi-hit games in game two. Senior Shannen von Duering was back in the lineup as the designated player for Carson as well, despite still dealing with a knee injury. “I was hoping we could get her to put some balls in play. It was either going to be a single or a home run,” said Vickrey. “It didn’t work out in the first two games so I’ll have to see what I am going to do tomorrow.” UP NEXT: A win over Douglas or McQueen at 2:30 p.m. would set up another consolation game at 4:30 p.m. Friday. Two wins Friday will put the Senators in the consolation finals.
