YSE File Photo
Behind a clutch two-out, two-run double by junior Victoria Joiner, the Livingston Central High School softball team continued its superb start to the 2024 softball season by defeating regional foe Christian County 4-1 on Thursday in Smithfield. It was the first loss of the season for the Colonels.
CCHS senior Gracie Harned homered for the third time in her past four games, tied the contest at 1-all with a solo bomb in the top of the fourth inning, and was pitching a gem until she found trouble in the bottom half of the fourth. That’s when Neveah Jennings bunted and reached on a two-out error, followed by a drawn walk from Audrey Leahy, leading to Joiner’s line-drive double to center that brought home the aforementioned base runners for a 3-1 Livingston lead.
The Cards tacked on an insurance run in the sixth, as Hadley Hargrove doubled and scored on Eden Campanella’s sacrifice fly, staking LCHS to a 4-1 advantage. And after Harned walked to lead off the Christian County seventh, Addison Tramble proceeded to strike out the next three Colonels to end the night and give Livingston Central its sixth win in eight games.
Tramble (3-2) finished with an astounding 15 strikeouts to keep the Colonels mostly out of rhythm. She walked just two and allowed three hits. Avery Adcock doubled in the first inning for CCHS and finished 2-for-3 in the loss. Christian County has now hit a HR in all five of its games in 2024.
For the Cardinals, the doubles by Joiner and Hargrove proved to be their only hits. Leahy and Emersyn Ramage each walked and scored a run in the win. Harned (2-1) struck out eight but suffered her first loss in the circle by allowing two hits, two walks, and four runs — one of which was earned.
These two teams are scheduled to meet again April 25 in Hopkinsville. For now, though, Christian County (4-1) will turn its attention to Madisonville-North Hopkins during a home game Friday at 6 p.m. Livingston Central (6-2) is also in action again Friday, hosting Union County at 6 p.m.
