Lady Trojans win KSHSAA Class 4A DII Regionals, baseball deemed runner-up

By Camden McFarland

camden@hometowngirard.com

 

The Girard Trojans’ softball and baseball teams competed in the KSHSAA Class 4A DII Regional Tournaments beginning Monday, May 14.

 

Softball

The Lady Trojans hosted their regional tournament Tuesday, May 15.

To start off the tournament, Girard faced Wichita-Trinity Academy.

The Lady Trojans went on a hitting-parade from the beginning, with senior Shaylun Grosstephan smacking a two-run home run in the first inning.

From here, Girard’s defense matched their offensive domination and the Lady Trojans managed to run-rule Trinity 15-0 in three innings.

Immediately following the victory, Girard advanced to the regional championship against Frontenac.

The Raiders proved to be a much stronger competition, but Girard handled them well regardless.

Through the first inning, the game remained scoreless as both teams battled to get on base. Nevertheless, the Lady Trojans were able to gain their first offensive advantage in the second after junior Marci Heatherly made her way home.

They continued to build their offensive momentum in the third, after senior Jaylynn Jenkins was sent home for Girard’s second run of the game.

Girard’s bats caught fire in the fourth for them to earn four more runs and push their lead to 6-0.

As senior Shelby Smith led the way on the mound, the Lady Trojans continued to play solid defense and wrapped up the remaining three innings by limiting Frontenac to minimal offensive movement. Girard continued to fire away on offense and earned three more runs.

With a final score of 9-0, the Lady Trojans were rightfully deemed regional champions for the second consecutive year and will be headed to Salina May 24 to defend their state title. They remain undefeated with a record of 22-0.

 

Baseball

The Trojans began regional play at Frontenac Monday, May 14. They faced Frontenac in round one for a grudge match after losing to them earlier this season.

The Raiders stole the lead early on after scoring one run in the third inning, but Girard was not swayed.

Despite battling weather delays, Girard gained control of the game and senior Ethan Goff earned the Trojans’ first run in the fourth inning after being sent home by a hit from junior Wade Boatman. Boatman also scored to move the score to 2-1.

From here, the Trojans refused to lie down. They continued to score three additional runs and allowed just one in the remaining five innings to send Frontenac home and advance to the regional championship against Iola.

The Trojans competed against Iola in the regional championship Tuesday, May 15, at Pittsburg State University due to weather.

Heading into this matchup, Girard was destined to face a solid team as Iola entered with a record of 17-1 as the top seed.

Nevertheless, the Trojans played hard on both offense and defense, but in the end Iola squeezed in a single fate-deciding run to steal the victory.

This final loss deemed the Trojans regional runners-up and pushed their final record on the season to 11-9; their first positive record in six years.