Lady Marshals drop season opener to Murray 6-2

Senior Sarenna Tomassi scored the first run in the Lady Marshals 2021 debut against Murray. Tomassi came to the plate on a triple by McKenzie Elkins.

A long 22 months have pasted since the Marshall County softball team took the field in competition – their last game on June 1, 2019 in the KHSAA State Tournament. Without six of their starters due to quarantine and the basketball Lady Marshals preparing for their trip to the Sweet Sixteen, they opened on Monday with a district game at home against Murray.

Marshall County is the Kentucky Softball Coaches Association (KSCA) pre-season favorite to win the First Region and are eyeing a 3-peat and third straight trip to the state tournament.

Murray’s 6-2 win over Marshall County ended a streak of 8-straight by the Lady Marshals over the Lady Tigers – their last win coming May 3, 2016.

Murray’s bats got cranking in the top of the third when they loaded the bases on singles by Sydney Wyatt, Angela Gierhart and Emily Dawson. They got on the board when Layne Latimer reached on an error to score their first run. Makenzie Turley singled to bring in two more to put Murray up 3-0.

In the top of the third, senior McKenzie Elkins hit a two-out triple that brought in the Lady Marshals first run of 2021.

Freshman Kylie Chapman, pitched Murray out of the top of the fourth when the Lady Marshals left runners on first and third.

Senior Kinley Edwards went 2-for-3 at the plate with a couple of singles in Monday’s season opener.

In the bottom of the fifth, the Lady Marshals made it a one-point game when senior Riley Piercefield’s RBI single brought in Sarenna Tomassi.

Murray took a 5-2 lead in the top of the sixth, scoring on a bunt from Amy Tish and single by Wyatt. Their final run coming in the top of the seventh on an RBI single by Turley. Turley led the Lady Tigers with three hits and three RBIs.

Chapman picked up the win, pitching all seven innings, allowing six hits and two earned runs. She struck out 12 and walked two. Tia Thorpe took the loss in 5.2 innings, allowing seven hits, five runs and struck out four.

Kinley Edwards, a senior, led the Lady Marshals at the plate with two singles along with Tomassi with a single and double.

Monday was the start of a full week for the Lady Marshals. Today (Tuesday) they host Hickman County followed by another district game on Thursday at Calloway County. Saturday they will play two games in the Lady Titan Classic at Mercer County against Franklin County and Model.

Murray      0  0  3  0  0  2  1    6  10  0
Marshall   0  0  1  0  1  0  0     2   6   1

Murray: Wyatt 3/4 (3-1B, RBI), Gierhart 1/3 (1B), Dawson 3/4 (2-1B, 2B), Turley 3/4 (2-1B, 2B 3 RBI)
Marshall: Tomassi 2/4 (1B, 2B, 3 RBI), Elkins 1/4 (3B, RBI), Piercefield 1/3 (1B, RBI), Edwards 2/3 (2-1B)
Murray: Chapman 7.0 (6 hits, 2 runs)
Record: 1-0
Marshall: Thorpe 5.1 (7 hits, 3 runs), Garland 1.1 (3 hits, 3 runs)
Record: 0-1