OVERLAND PARK, Kan. – The Johnson County softball team, ranked seventh in NJCAA Division II, opened its 2021 season over the weekend, and came away with a two-game sweep over Marshalltown, and split with Kirkwood.
The Lady Cavaliers posted wins of 12-0 and 3-1 over the Tigers. JCCC lost the first game of the series with Kirkwood, 6-5, but rebounded with a 10-2 win to take the second game.
In the season opener, designated player Emma Baldwin was a home run shy of cycle, going 3-for-3 with two runs scored and three driven in. For the weekend, Baldwin hit .714 (5-for-7) with six RBI.
Rightfielder Katie Enneking ripped a triple, drove in three runs and scored a run, and first baseman Kaylin Watkins had a single and double, scored twice and drove in two runs.
Right-hander Kyla Etter pitched a complete game shutout, allowing just one hit with five strikeouts.
In the second game, a 3-1 win, the Lady Cavaliers rallied from a 1-0 deficit with a single run in the fourth and two in the fifth. Third baseman Aubrey Griffith and DP Natalie Bruce were each credited with an RBI.
Right-handed pitcher AJ Ellman got the victory. She pitched a complete-game, allowing one run off two hits and two strikeouts.
In the opening game against Kirkwood, the Eagles scored a run in the top of the ninth to go up 6-5, then shut down JCCC in the bottom of the inning to get the win.
The Lady Cavaliers outhit Kirkwood, and had five players with two or more hits, but JCCC stranded 17 runners.
Centerfielder Haley Puccio was 4-for-4 with two runs and an RBI. Enneking, Baldwin, Griffith and Kaylin Watkins, who also pitched, each had two hits. Enneking and Baldwin also each drove in two runs.
In the circle, Watkins hurled all nine innings. She allowed six runs, only two earned and struck out seven batters.
In the final game, a 10-2 win, Puccio again was the hot hitter. She had a single and triple and drove in four runs. For the opening weekend, she hit .600 (6-for-10) with two doubles, a triple, five runs scored and five driven in.