Braidy Hunt’s Home Run Sparks Tiger Softball Past Albany

Worth County’s softball team beat Albany 6-4 behind Braidy Hunt’s three run home run in the sixth inning and the Tigers remained unbeaten in conference play. They defused a dangerous Albany lineup.

Albany missed two chances to take control in the early innings thanks to a pair of double plays by the Tiger defense. In the first inning, Michaela Martin singled, only for second baseman Anna Spainhower to catch Kayce Messner’s pop fly and double her off, meaning the bases were empty for slugger Gabby Newman, who flied out. In the third, with Delaney Shields on first, Martin popped to Anna Gladstone on first; she tagged out Shields to double her off first.

Meanwhile, Worth County got a run in the second to take a 1-0 lead. Merrideth Spiers tripled down the left field line. Jill Hardy’s fly ball to center didn’t get her home, but Hailey Adwell’s grounder to third did as Spiers dove safe under the tag.

That lead stood up until the fourth when third baseman Merrideth Spiers’ throw to first hit Kayce Messner, who was safe on the error to lead off the inning. Gabby Newman singled to right and Torrie Runyan’s bunt moved them to second and third with one out. That set up Sierra Anthony’s single to put Albany in front 2-1.

Worth County tied it up in the fifth when Aivry Griffin reached on the third baseman’s throw in the dirt. Anna Gladstone grounded into a force at second, but then stole second and came home on Megan Cassavaugh’s single. The Tiger defense prevented any damage in the fifth when Morgan Beagle laid out and made a diving catch of Paige Brown’s screamer that looked headed for a double or triple.

With one out in the sixth, Anna Spainhower singled to left. Morgan Beagle grounded into an apparent force at second, but Spainhower knocked the ball out of Delainey Shields’ glove at second and was safe. Braidy Hunt was up next, and her fly ball initially looked like a long out to right. But it kept carrying over everybody’s head and she flew around the bases with the three run home run to put the Tigers in front 5-2. Aivry Griffin grounded out, but the Tigers tacked on another run when Anna Gladstone tripled to left and came home when Megan Cassavaugh reached on Shields’ bobble to make it 6-2.

Albany made a comeback bid in the sixth when Kayce Messner pulled off a perfect slap hit to left for a single and came home on Gabby Newman’s triple to make it 6-3. Worth County almost got out of the inning without further damage as Torrie Runyan and Sierra Anthony popped out, but Newman came home on a return throw to the mound as Worth County fell asleep, making it 6-4. Newman pulled that off against North Harrison earlier in the year as well. But Worth County got out of the inning and shut down Albany 1-2-3 in the ninth.