State softball tournament highlights: Daviess County shuts out Mercer County

caroline makauskas

Fri, Jun 7, 2024, 7:58 a.m.·6 min read

Callie Smith had already put Daviess County on the board in the first inning with an RBI single, but the Panthers always try to come out strong and start games on the right foot. Molly Hancock then built a full count, avoiding outside pitches and making contact on a pair of foul balls.

“I just went up there and I trusted what I do,” Hancock said. “We just looked for my pitch, waiting for the pitcher to make an error and pitch me my pitch. And (Mercer County pitcher Ashley Howard) pitched me my pitch!”

Hancock connected perfectly, smashing the ball towards center field and straight out of the University of Kentucky’s John Cropp Stadium. That home run, Hancock’s sixth of the season, also brought home Annie Newman and Avery Morris, and gave the Panthers a quick 4-0 lead against Mercer County (18-10).

Daviess County (29-6) went on to a 13-0, run-rule victory over the first-time 12th Region champions in the opening round of the KHSAA Clark’s Pump-N-Shop Softball State Tournament presented by UK HealthCare on Thursday afternoon.

Daviess County head coach John Biggs said the team’s strategy entering the game — and every game in which the Panthers are the visiting team — was to “set a tone.”

“And that doesn’t necessarily mean you have to put up runs,” Biggs said. “But we want to have quality at-bats. And I thought we had quality at-bats plus we put up some runs. Obviously we got one right in there, but then the at-bat that Molly had. Molly Hancock’s been really on fire for us the last couple of weeks, the last three weeks of the season. She’s seen the ball really well. She battled there.”

Quality, for Daviess County, is built upon tradition and routine — the keys to the program’s continued success. A consistent practice schedule, beloved traditions, clear expectations and complete commitment have elevated the Panthers to their fifth straight berth to the state tournament, and their fourth consecutive quarterfinals appearance.

Daviess County has now run-ruled its first-round opponent in back-to-back years and shut out its first-round foe for the third straight season.

“This whole team, we bring energy,” Hancock said. “The dugout brings energy. We kind of rely on each other throughout the whole game, and we just pick each other up. If someone’s not having a good game, we trust the whole entire lineup and know with anyone coming up, anyone could do anything.”

Truly, the Panthers’ win was a team effort, and there was certainly no shortage of energy. Eight players crossed home plate at least once, and nine recorded at least a hit.

Daviess County added another pair of runs in the top of the second inning thanks to RBIs from junior Sadie Morris and Shelby Bennett. The Panthers dominated the fourth inning, tacking on six additional runs courtesy of RBI singles from Smith and Danielle Beckwith, and RBI doubles from Kylie Clark and Annie Newman. Daviess County’s final run of the game came on a Story Hume RBI single.

Daviess County sophomore pitcher Sophia Cain struck out four batters and allowed zero runs on just one hit over the course of five innings. Thirty-nine of Cain’s 73 pitches thrown were called strikes. Cain said the strong offensive start gave her confidence in the circle.

“It just gave me relief,” Cain said. “I knew they had me backed up whenever I could go out on the mound, and I didn’t have to worry about anything else throughout the game.”

The Panthers will face 7th Region champ Assumption (29-11) at 10 a.m. Saturday at John Cropp Stadium.

The Daviess County Panthers cheer on Molly Hancock (28) after her home run during the state softball tournament against Mercer County on Thursday at UK’s John Cropp Stadium.

Thursday’s other games

Assumption 3, Highlands 2: The Rockets’ defense held strong to stave off the Bluebirds’ comeback attempt.

Highlands (27-13) scored first when Michelle Barth singled to send Bailey Markus home in the top of the first. Assumption (29-11) fired back in the bottom of the second with a Lauren Campisano solo homer and a Paige Crain sacrifice fly. The Rockets added another run in the bottom of the third with a Lauren Satterly triple. Highlands scored its second and final run in the top of the fourth on a Layla Zepf RBI.

Ava Lou Mattingly allowed two runs on four hits over the course of four innings, and Satterly recorded five strikeouts and allowed zero runs on zero hits in three innings for Assumption. Highlands’ Kaitlyn Dixon took the loss in the circle, recording two strikeouts and allowing three runs on six hits.

Boyd County 2, Mercy 1: The Lions (23-17) rode a late-stage surge to defeat the Banshees.

After four-and-a-half scoreless innings, Bethlehem (21-14) broke through with an RBI double from Madison Thornberry. Boyd County answered in the final hour, when Jaycie Goad hit a two-run homer. The Banshees couldn’t find a rebuttal, and the Lions earned their first win in the state softball tournament.

Elyn Simpkins got the win in the circle for Boyd County, striking out six batters and allowing one run on five hits. Maya Merrill took the loss for Bethlehem, striking out 10 batters and allowing two runs on four hits.

North Laurel 6, Letcher Central 4: The Jaguars (28-9) played a balanced game to earn a first-round victory over the Cougars.

North Laurel struck first in the second inning on a pair of unearned runs, and added another run in the third on a Bella Sizemore RBI. Saige McClure scored another unearned run for North Laurel in the fifth inning, and the Jaguars tacked on two more in the sixth with both an RBI single and an unearned run from Katie Sams.

Letcher County Central (27-10) scored four runs in the top of the seventh inning thanks to an RBI double from Nicely, RBI singles from Emma Pavlik and Scarlett Stamper and an unearned run from Stamper.

Emma Carl earned the win in the circle for the Jaguars, striking out 10 batters and allowing four runs on eight hits.