May 7 - vs. Blue Phantoms

Coming off of last game's loss to the Inferno, Purple Lightning came to the field to try to bounce back. The task seemed especially difficult due to the fact that we were down 2 players. Gabby's injury was still relatively new so she was still in an ankle brace and rocking some crutches, but she did show up in full uniform to support her team from the dugout. On top of that, Sara came to the game with an injury as well. Even though the decision was made to sit her out of the game, she also stuck it out to cheer on her team. Great job girls! Way to show your Purple Lightning spirit. For this game, Purple Lightning was hosting the Blue Phantoms. This marked the first meeting of the season between these two teams, which added another layer of uncertainty, but the weather was great. So it was up to the Lightning girls to get themselves back to their winning ways.

1st Inning
Tess was in to pitch, starting us off for the game. She found her stride quickly and took care of the first couple of batters. Strike out on the 1st batter. Strike out on the 2nd batter. She threw heat to give us the first 2 outs of the inning. Tess slowed down a touch on the 3rd batter and the batter walked putting a Blue Phantom girl on base. The next batter then connected with the ball sending a fast grounder through to Yazmine at 2nd. Yazmine made the adjustment and picked up the ball, she quickly turned and made the toss to Kelsey at 1st to get the 3rd out, making quick work of the Blue Phantoms' first inning offense.

Janessa in to start us off in the game. After getting to 2 and 2, Janessa hit one out to right field for a double. Alli was up next and she also connected. This time it was a grounder through the right side infield for a single, which allowed Janessa to get to 3rd. On Tess's at bat, Alli stole 2nd, putting Lightning runners on 2nd and 3rd, but after the 1, 2 punch of Janessa and Alli, the Phantom pitcher got Tess to swing, striking her out for the 1st out of the inning. Kelsey was up next and after a full count, the pitcher gave her 1st base on a walk and the bases were loaded. Yazmine came to the plate and connected on the pitch. This time it was a short grounder down the 1st base line, Janessa took off for home. The pitcher ran up to field the ball but was too late to make the throw at 1 so she turned and, just in time, tossed it to the catcher and got the out on Janessa at home. With bases loaded, Hylah came to the plate and she wanted to take the ball for a ride, but the Phantom pitcher, now seeming rattled walked Hylah, bringing Alli across. After that, walks on Erin and Caitlin brought Kelsey and Yazmine home for 2 more runs. It looked like the pitcher was going to keep us walking in the inning, but after getting full count on Alexis, got her to swing at a high pitch getting the strike out and ending the Lightning surge in the 1st.

Blue Phantoms 0 - Purple Lightning 3

2nd Inning
With the Blue Phantoms trying to find an answer to the Lightning's 1st inning attack, Tess came back in to pitch in the 2nd. Tess gave the first Phantom batter 1st base on a walk, but quickly brought it back with a strike out on the 2nd batter. The 3rd batter was hit by a stray pitch for a walk. When the next batter came to the plate, the runners on base made a successful steal, putting Phantoms into scoring position. Tess walked the next batter, loading the bases, and with 1 out so far in the inning, Blue Phantoms were threatening to score. But a combination of Tess watching for and attempting the pick off at 3 as well as Hylah staying on top of the pass balls kept the Phantom runners in line. Tess then took care of business and, once again, threw heat at the next 2 batters, striking them out and shutting the door on the Phantom offense for the 2nd inning in a row.

Maia came to the plate to lead us off in the 2nd inning. Getting anxious, Maia was caught swinging and was struck out. Janessa was up next and after a full count, the pitcher threw a high pitch and Janessa walked to 1st. On Alli's next at bat, Janessa stole her way around to 3rd and a walk on Alli put Purple Lightning runners on 1st and 3rd. The Phantom pitcher clearly started struggling at the rubber and with walks on Alli, Tess, Kelsey, Yazmine, Hylah and Erin, kept the bases loaded and brought in 4 runs for Purple Lightning. This forced the Blue Phantoms to put in a fresh pitcher. It turned out to be a good decision as the new pitcher was able to get the strike out on Caitlin for the 2nd out of the inning. Alexis was next and, this time, connected with the ball. On the bounce, the pitcher grabbed it and had the time to make a clean throw to 1st for the out, putting a cap on the Purple Lightning's 4 runs.

Blue Phantoms 0 - Purple Lightning 7

3rd Inning
Kelsey in to pitch in the 3rd. A walk on the 1st batter put a Phantom runner on base. The next batter hit a short grounder down the 1st base line. Kelsey ran over to field the ball, but an off-balance throw that went over Tess at 1st allowed the runners to keep going. Quickly, the Lightning defense was able to get the ball under control and bring it back in to stop the runners at 2nd and 3rd. Kelsey, now determined, got the strike out on the next batter, notching the 1st out of the inning. The 4th batter hit a fast grounder straight to Yazmine at 2nd. She made the stop again and quickly recovered and made the throw to Tess to get the out at 1, but the runner on 3rd had time to cross the plate, putting 1 on the board for the Blue Phantoms. Refocused, Kelsey got back up to the rubber and peeled 3 off on the next batter to get the 3rd out.

Maia was in to lead us off again. After a 1 and 2 count, Maia kept herself alive on foul balls. Then, on a full count, Maia connected and sent the ball flying to a spot just behind the Phantoms' 2nd baseman, giving Maia time to reach 1st base. On Janessa's turn, she made contact also, sending it out to right field. The Phantom outfield was not able to get to the ball, giving Janessa a double on the play. Lightning runners on 2nd and 3rd, Alli was up next and after a 2 and 2 count, she hit a pop up that drifted towards 3rd base. Maia took off running and the ball hit the ground between 2nd and 3rd. Alli made it on base as the Phantom infield went for the out on Maia at home. The short stop was able to field the ball and make the throw to get the out, preventing Maia's score. Trying to keep her team alive, the Phantom pitcher was able to get 3 over the plate to get the strike out on Tess. Kelsey was next and on a pass ball, Janessa made a break for it. This time, the Phantom catcher was not able to get the ball to the pitcher covering home in time and Janessa crossed the plate, putting 1 more run on the board for Purple Lightning. Eventually, the pitcher was able to get the strike out on Kelsey, closing out the 3rd.

Blue Phantoms 1 - Purple Lightning 8

4th Inning
Kelsey back in to pitch. Purple Lightning, energized and focused, building on the momentum of the earlier innings, proved to be too much for the Blue Phantom offense in the 4th. The 1st batter connected and sent a fast grounder through the infield, but Alli picked it up on the run and gunned it to Tess at 1st for the out. Kelsey made quick work of the 2nd batter and struck her out for the 2nd out of the inning, sending her back to the dugout. The 3rd batter also made contact, but this time sent it flying towards Alli at short. Alli got herself under it to make the catch and the 3rd out, shutting the Phantoms down in the 4th.

Purple Lightning came up to bat and, by this time, the Phantom pitchers posed no threat as Yazmine took a swing on the first pitch that dropped the ball right in front of the pitcher. The pitcher went to pick it up to throw Yazmine out at 1st, but couldn't get a grip on it and Yazmine made it on base. Hylah was up next and Yazmine stole 2nd. Then, Hylah hit a fast grounder through the Phantom infield getting it past the 2nd baseman. Hylah reached 1st as Yazmine turned the corner and headed for home. Yazmine crossed the plate for the score. Erin was up next and the steals were on. Hylah was able to make it around to 3rd on a couple of pass balls. Walks on both Erin and Caitlin loaded the bases. But the Phantoms' pitcher was able to pull it together to get 3 over on Alexis for the strike out. Maia came up to bat next and connected for the 2nd time. On the short bounce, the pitcher went after the ball, but dropped it on the way up. While the pitcher struggled to gain control of the ball, Hylah made a break for it, causing the pitcher to think about the out at 1st or at home. But it was too late as both Maia reached 1st and Hylah crossed the plate. Back at the top of the order with bases loaded, Janessa hit a hard grounder down the 1st base line just far enough to get the 1st baseman off the bag. Janessa got on brining Erin in. Alli came up and connected for a single and Caitlin reached home after the short stop dropped the ball. The Phantom pitcher was not able to refocus as she walked both Tess and Kelsey, bringning Maia and Janessa home. With bases loaded, Yazmine made contact, sending a grounder down the 3rd base line for a single. The 3rd baseman was able to collect the ball and make the play on Alli at home getting the 2nd out of the inning. Hylah came up to bat and with the count at 1 and 1, Tess walked off base early, drawing the 3rd out of the inning. But with 6 runs in the inning and time running short, the chances for a Blue Phantom comeback were now very slim.

Blue Phantoms 1 - Purple Lightning 14

5th Inning
It was do or die for the Blue Phantoms in the 5th inning. While a comeback from such a deficit seemed highly unlikely, they still had a chance to put a couple more on the board before the the end of the game. Unfortunately for them, Kelsey, with a big grin on her face, was now on fire and, with the best pitching she's put together so far this season, slammed the door shut on the Blue Phantoms. 1st batter, strike out. 2nd batter, Strike Out. 3rd batter, STRIKE OUT!!! 3 up, 3 down, Kelsey sent the Phantom offense back to the dugout, bringing the Lightning offense out for another round.

Since the out in the last inning was at 3rd base, Hylah came back to the plate to finish her at bat. Hylah made contact and sent the ball over the pitcher. The short stop couldn't make it to the ball in time and it hit the ground in front of 2nd base as Hylah reached 1st. Erin was up next and the pitcher was able to strike her out for the 1st out, but walks on both Caitlin and Alexis loaded the bases. On Maia's next trip, she connected for the 3rd time in a row. The runners took off and the Phantom defense had to move to get to the slow moving grounder. By the time they fielded the ball, Maia made it to 1st and Hylah crossed the plate. Janessa was up next and she hit a high fly ball. The 2nd baseman positioned herself under it, but she started looking for her play too soon and missed the catch. The ball hit the ground and the runners were on the move again. Janessa made it to 1st and Caitlin made it home. Alli came up to the plate next and she got on base with a walk, bringing Alexis home for the final run of the game. With time running out, the game was called.

Final Score
Blue Phantoms 1 - Purple Lightning 17

Game Ball
With 5 strike outs in 2 innings for Tess and 6 strike outs in 3 innings for Kelsey (including a spectacular, no-hit 5th inning), it was difficult not to make a case for either Tess or Kelsey receiving the game ball. But Maia proved to be the Purple Lightning standout in the game with 3 successful at bats in a row. That's what happens when you stay focused in there. Great job Maia!

Hats off to the whole team as they bounced back from the last game in grand fashion. Their energy and enthusiasm through this whole game was great. And their playing on both sides of the ball was much improved. Let's keep it up girls as we are now firmly in the 2nd half of the season.