HUMBOLDT — Humboldt High’s Courtney Richey already has a perfect game under her belt this season.
She settled for a one-hitter in her second outing of the 2014 softball season, but Thursday’s 16-0 win over visiting Erie was no less dominant.
Richey struck out 12 in four innings — that’s three an inning — in improving to 2-0 on the season.
The Lady Cubs’ Jaci Ross picked up the baton in game 2, allowing four hits and striking out seven in a 16-3 romp.
Meanwhile, Richey flexed some muscle at the plate, blasting a three-run home run that cleared the center-field fence. The shot was even more impressive when considering she hit it into the teeth of a brisk north wind.
“Who knows how far that would’ve gone without the wind,” Lady Cub head coach Brad Piley said.
The wins put Humboldt at 4-0 on the season and in Tri-Valley League play and marked Humboldt’s first games at the new USD 258 sports complex just east of town.
The scary part?
“We really didn’t play all that well,” Piley said.
With Richey on the mound, they didn’t need to.
Through two games, Richey has struck out 19 in seven innings, while allowing one hit and one walk.
The hit came on a 2-1 change-up to Erie’s Kaitlin Brown with two outs in the second; the Red Devils added a walk in the third, the only base runners Richey has allowed this season.
Meanwhile, the Lady Cubs racked up 10 hits and 17 stolen bases in scoring at least three runs in every inning. The Lady Cubs started with five in the first, pushed it to 8-0 by the end of the second, 11-0 by the end of the third and 16-0 to end the game in the bottom of the fourth on Kayle Riebel’s single.
Among the offensive stalwarts:
Breanna Kline had a single and five stolen bases. Brook Turner singled and stole three bases. Mallory Roush had two singles, three steals and three RBIs. Richey had a double, four stolen bases and an RBI. Riebel had two singles, a double, two stolen bases and three RBIs. Morgan Morris drove in two runs with a single. Hannah Hulett singled.
The Lady Cubs also reached base with walks 12 times and had two batters hit by pitches.
HUMBOLDT RACED to a 7-0 run lead by the end of the third inning in the second game before Erie put up three in the top of the fourth. The Lady Cubs responded by exploding for nine in the bottom of the inning, accentuated by Richey’s three-run blast.
Humboldt pounded out seven extra-base hits.
Kline had a single, triple, two stolen bases and an RBI. Turner singled, doubled and had an RBI. Roush singled, doubled and stole a base. Richey had a single, home run, two stolen bases and three RBIs. Riebel tripled twice and had two RBIs. Delaney Umholtz had a single and stolen base. Morgan Morris had a single and RBI. Kasey Beeman doubled.
