It appears the Colonels dig the long ball. They homered for the fourth game in a row and remained unbeaten in as many contests Thursday, as the Christian County High School softball team bested host Webster County 4-2 in Dixon.
Gracie Harned’s 14th home run of her CCHS career — a two-run shot in the top of the fifth inning — broke a 2-2 tie and sent the Cols to their fourth straight win to begin the 2024 season. Harned, a heralded Colonel senior, waited for her pitch on a 2-0 count and drove an offering from Trojans pitcher Chloe Papineau over the left field wall for the game-winning blast.
It was the second HR of the year for Harned, who finished 3-for-3 with three RBIs. She also had a pair of doubles, giving her eight of County’s 14 total bases. Four different Christian County players have accounted for five homers thus far this season. Harned’s career high for HRs in a season is six.
Freshman Jordan Turner (2-0) continued her success in the CCHS circle. She struck out 10 in the five-hit complete game and walked none. The lone earned run she allowed came on Jadeyn Jackson’s RBI double that gave Webster a 2-0 lead in the bottom of the second inning.
Harned helped her squad answer with an RBI double of her own that plated Avery Adcock in the third, pulling the Colonels within a run. Adcock, the trusty lead-off hitter, went 2-for-4 and scored twice, including the winning run on Harned’s bomb. In the top of the fourth, after Haley Patterson walked and advanced to third on Jazmira Tejada’s single. Turner helped her own cause by delivering a game-tying RBI single, knotting the game at 2-all.
Papineau (3-3) also went the distance but took the loss for WCHS. She gave up nine hits, four runs and a walk in the seven innings. At the plate, Papineau went 1-for-3 with an RBI. Jackson was 2-for-3 with the aforementioned RBI. The Trojans (3-4) got a two-out single from Hailey Allen during a last-ditch comeback attempt in the seventh, but she was caught stealing to end the night.
Christian County (4-0) will try to start a season with five straight victories for the second time in the past three years when the Colonels travel Friday to take on Franklin-Simpson at 6:15 p.m. It’s the second of four straight home games for CCHS. Webster County hosts Dawson Springs on Friday evening.
