Story by Wyatt Ebersole

The Butler Softball team collected a dominant sweep of the Northwest Kansas Tech Mavericks on Wednesday afternoon. The Grizzlies shutout the Mavs in game one, winning 15-0, and then taking game two, 17-1. The wins for the Grizzlies improve them to 37-10 overall and 26-4 in conference play. The losses drop NW Tech to 1-31 overall and 1-27 in conference play. 

Game One

The Grizzlies started the seeing the ball well, as four of the Grizzlies' first five plate appearances resulted in walks, giving the Grizzlies an early 1-0 lead after Kendyl Anderson's walk. Amayiah Hall recorded the first hit of the game later in the inning, hitting an infield single to score Ryanna Valdivia from third. Kaylah Newman scored the only Grizzly run of the second inning, slapping a ball back up the middle for an RBI single that brought Madi Divis home. Newman scored the first of nine runs for the Grizzlies in the third, hitting a sacrifice fly with the bases loaded to extend the lead to 4-0. Valdivia blew the game open the following at-bat, rocketing a softball over the wall in right field to make it a 7-0 Grizzly lead. The Grizzlies then reloaded the bases and Hall then drew another walk to increase the lead. Aly Hageman then ripped a bases-loaded double off the wall in right to keep the line moving. Divis capped off the nine-run inning for the Grizzlies with a two-RBI double up the middle to make the score 12-0 Butler after three innings. In the fourth, Briona Woods added a two-run homer and Hageman hit an RBI single to extend the lead to 15-0. Starter Allyson Montgomery struck out the side in the top of the fifth to give the Grizzlies the five-inning, run-rule victory in game one over the Mavericks 

Amayiah Hall was a perfect 3-3 in the game with two-RBI and a walk. Kendyl Anderson did not record an at-bat in the game as she drew three walks in her three plate appearances.

Montgomery threw all five innings, allowing no runs on three hits, while striking out ten.

Game Two

Another offensive onslaught in game two of the day guided the Grizzlies to their second big win of the day. Valdivia opened the scoring in game two with a two-out, solo shot to left center field. Woods followed that with a rare inside the park home run down the right field line to make it 2-0 Grizzlies. In the second inning, the Grizzlies scored two more, hitting their third home run of game two, this one courtesy of Reece Briggs who hit a two-run blast to center. Two more Grizzlies crossed the plate in the third as Woods hit a triple to right that brought Valdivia home and Kendyl Anderson followed that with an RBI single to bring Woods in. Through three innings, Northwest Tech had managed to put just one runner on base and the Grizzlies held a 6-0 lead. The Mavericks scored their first and only run of the day in the top of the fourth via a sacrifice groundout cutting the Grizzly lead to 6-1. In response to the single run scored by NW Tech, the Grizzlies exploded in the bottom of the fourth, scoring 11 runs to push to an insurmountable 17-1 lead. Kaylah Newman hit an RBI single, then Valdivia mashed her second home run of the game, this one a three-run blast to left center. The Grizzlies then drew four straight walks to reload the bases and then bring in another run. Aly Hageman reached on an error, but that allowed Anderson to come home from third, and a second error on the play let Amayiah Hall score. In her second at-bat of the inning, Newman reached on an error that let Briggs touch home and then Valdivia hit a double to left center that brought Hageman home from second. To cap off the inning, Woods hit a double to the wall in left allowing both Valdivia and Newman to score. Ariel Matula then closed out the Mavs in the fifth inning to give the Grizzlies their second run-rule victory of the day.

Valdivia was a perfect 3-3 in game two while also drawing a walk and batting in five Grizzly runs. Briona Woods hit for the cycle in game two, going 4-4 with four RBIs.

Starter Emma Koeneke posted her third straight fantastic outing allowing no runs on just one hit in her three innings pitched. 

Butler Softball honored all nine of their 2023 sophomores after the conclusion of game two.

2023 Sophomores: #00 Amayiah Hall, #7 Allyson Montgomery, #11 Brianna Acosta, #12 Ryanna Valdivia, #13 Briona Woods, #15 Kendyl Anderson, #19 Reece Briggs, #24 Emma Koeneke, #34 Ariel Matula

NOTES: Game one starter Allyson Montgomery is now fourth in Butler Softball history for strikeouts in a season with 203. She passed Regan Mergele (2017, 196) and she only trails Celina Sullivan (2018, 223), Sydnee Eck (2014, 228), and Maggie Ham (2013, 288)…