Humboldt baseball and softball started the 2019 season with the same level of offensive fury and defensive intensity that youd expect from two teams with their eye on a trip to the 2A state tournament.
In their Tuesday series versus Neodesha and their Thursday series at Erie, the Cubs steamrolled their competition, taking early 4-0 records after the first week of the season.
The Cub baseball team won 10-0 and 19-4 versus Neodesha and 20-0 and 20-5 versus Erie while softball won their two games versus the Lady Bluestreaks 10-4 and 17-2 before demolishing the Lady Red Devils 20-3 and 15-0.
Neodesha
Freshman starting pitcher Brooklyn Ellis earned her first two wins of her high school career, throwing for seven innings while allowing four runs on seven hits and two walks with five strikeouts while going for just three innings in the shortened game two and allowing two runs on six hits with a strikeout.
The Lady Cubs got off to big leads in both games 6-1 after two innings in the first and 12-0 in the second. Neodesha never found a big inning but they were able to pick off a single run in six different innings in the two games.
Senior Morgan Mauk led the way with three singles in both games while senior Aricah McCall had four singles combined in the two games.
Junior Winter Snyder homered twice in game one and hit a double and then homered again in game two along with hitting two doubles.
Isabelle Murrow had five total stolen bases in the two games.
Meanwhile, while softball had fast starts in their blowouts, the Cub baseball team took a couple of innings before completely demolishing the Blue Streaks.
In game one, the Cubs put up a run in the first inning and then went scoreless until the fourth where they put up nine runs which triggered the five-inning run rule an inning later. Things went slightly faster in game two but heading into the bottom of the third, the game was all tied up at four. Humboldt scored 15 runs between the bottom of the third and fourth innings, ending the game and getting their second win.
Jackson Aikins and Kaden Barnett split the five innings in game one on the mound. Aikins didnt allow a hit in his 2.2 innings while striking out three and walking two while Barnett allowed two hits while recording a walk and a strikeout.
Game two saw senior Xavier Bauer take the mound for the start with senior Cooper Jaro coming in for relief in the final 1.2 innings. Bauer allowed a hit and three runs while striking out four and walking one in his 2.1 innings while Jaro allowed two hits and a run while striking out two and walking one.
First baseman Taylor Lassman had the lone multi-hit performance in game one while Jaro and Lassman each had two hits in game two. The Cubs were also walked 12 times in three innings in game two while recording 12 stolen bases as a team.
Erie
Ellis boosted her play even more in her third and fourth times out. In game one, she allowed just three runs on five hits in five innings of work while striking out three before pitching her first high school shutout of her career, allowing just three hits and a walk in three innings in the 15-0 game two win.
Snyder continued to show her power by homering in game two along with recording a single and a double in game one. She also stole three bases.
Kirstyn Murrow had three hits as well in game one that led to three RBIs.
