For the fifth-straight season and 11th time in program history, the Butler softball team is Region VI Champions after a 10-0 victory over Barton Sunday afternoon in the championship game at Legends Park in Dodge City, KS.
With the win, Butler will now host the Region IX winner in the Plains District Championship in El Dorado, KS on Monday, May 17-18 in a best-of-three series with the 'if' game happening on Tuesday. The district winner will then receive an automatic bid to the NJCAA National Tournament in Yuma, Ariz., which runs from May 25-29.
As they had all tournament long, Butler got off to a hot start scoring three runs in the first inning, rallying after a controversial call at the plate on a double steal that scored Madi Young. They added another two runs in the bottom half of the second with RBI's from Shayna Espy and Emily Adler taking a 5-0 lead. The way Butler starter Maddie Redman was pitching and a five-run bottom of the fifth would essentially put the game away as Butler led 10-0 (no run-rule in title game) heading into the sixth. The insurance runs were tacked on after a six hit performance in the fifth with RBI's from Mariah Wheeler, Brooke McCorkle, Gentry Shepherd and Alex Olson. Butler then proceeded to close out Barton in the final two frames and won their fifth straight Region VI title.
Madi Young, who had a 3-4 day at the plate, set another school record Sunday afternoon surpassing assistant coach Morgan Bohanan for most doubles hit in a season hitting her 31st of the year. Her 92 hits on the year are also a new single season record for the Grizzlies and she already set the single season runs scored record on Saturday, now at 103. Mariah Wheeler went 2-3 with three RBI's hitting a two-run double in the first to ignite the Grizzlies. Emily Adler was 2-2 with an RBI and a run scored.
Maddie Redman continued her dominance in the circle improving to 22-0 on the year, winning all three tournament games pitched over the weekend. Redman held the Cougars to just three hits in the first five innings, giving up no walks and striking out seven batters. She retired the side in each of the first three innings on Sunday, striking out all three in the top of the third. Barton only had three baserunners on throughout the entirety of the contest. In her three games pitched during the Region VI tournament, Redman finished with a 0.93 earned-run average giving up just 10 hits over the course of 15 innings. She struck out 28 batters during the weekend and did not walk a batter.
Butler (47-2, 26-0) has now won 43 straight games and will look to carry their momentum into the Plains District Championship on Monday, May 17th against the winner of the Region IX tournament (Colorado/Nebraska).
