WESTFIELD — Two was enough.
After dropping back-to-back Hoosier Heritage Conference games this week, the Class 4A No. 16 Mt. Vernon Marauders were primed for a bounce back.
At Westfield on Friday night, the Marauders did just that.
Senior ace Maddie Taylor struck out 11 batters, senior shortstop Haley Kissee was a triple shy of the cycle — blasting her team-leading sixth home run of the season — and the Marauders run ruled the host Shamrocks, 10-0, to win in five innings.
“It definitely feels really good because I think we needed that little bust out hit to really get us going again,” said Kissee, a Purdue Northwest recruit. “I think everyone just settled in and started relaxing and doing their thing.”
On Tuesday, the Marauders (12-4, 4-3 HHC) lost to 4A No. 7 Shelbyville, 1-0, on the road, and on Thursday, they fell to 4A No. 15 Pendleton Heights, 13-3, at home.
Unable to find the big inning earlier this week, the Marauders inched towards it at Westfield (7-10), taking a 1-0 lead in the first inning off Kissee’s fourth double of the year. Kissee’s foreshadowing hit drove in Davenport recruit Riley Hasseld on a near center-field home run that grazed the wall.
In the top of the third, freshman Easton Wampler increased the lead 2-0, belting a solo home run with two outs over fence, marking her fifth of the year.
“Tonight gave them a ton of confidence. We talked about it before the game, we had to find something little to strive towards. You can’t go up and hit home runs every time, so whether it was just putting the ball into place and that is your success, then good,” Mt. Vernon head coach Veronica Kirby said. “We have to make that adjustment and figure out how to connect each of those together to be able to accomplish what we accomplished tonight.”
The Marauders took the initial steps in the top of the first as Hasseld reached base with a single and moved into scoring position at second base on a wild pitch. Kissee wasted no time with one out to supply Taylor with an immediate cushion.
Kissee finished 3-for-4 with a double, an RBI single in the fourth and a two-run home run in the fifth that she kissed off the left-field light post just beyond the fence.
She drove in five runs overall for 27 RBI this season and accounted for three of the Marauders 11 hits.
“It was just important to get our confidence back,” said Taylor, a Ball State recruit. “It helps out a lot when your offense is working for you.”
Taylor retired eight straight stemming from the bottom of the first into the bottom of the fourth. The left-hander didn’t allow a hit until the fourth, a single by freshman Brooklyn Carey with one out.
Taylor left Carey stranded, striking out the next two hitters.
Prior to Taylor’s fourth-inning lock down, Kissee and the Marauders put six runs on the board in the top half — all RBIs — with an RBI double by Mia Robbins, a pair of bases-loaded RBI singles, four walks drawn and four bases-loaded situations.
Kissee drove in a pair with the bags packed on a hard-hit single to deep center field that almost cleared.
“Kissee should have had three tonight. That wind cut those first two, and then she finally crushed that one,” Kirby said. “That was awesome. Good for her. She’s seeing the ball so well right now and playing great defensively.”
A two-run single by Molly Buck with the bases loaded gave Mt. Vernon an 8-0 lead.
“Hopefully, from here, we continue to go up and keep doing our thing, let the nerves go away and keep hitting the ball like we know we can,” Kissee said. “Sometimes, we have our bad games, but we know how to get back to how we play.”
Taylor drew three walks at the plate, but she only issued one from the circle, limiting Westfield to four hits total.
She ended the game by striking out Indiana University recruit Avery Parker, a junior, swinging in the bottom of the fifth with two runners on base.
“We peaked pretty early (this season), but it just takes time. Everybody has a fall in a season, so it’s coming back around,” Taylor said. “It’s a good win for us, but we still have a lot to work on. We’re getting there.”
Hasseld went 3-for-4 with an RBI single in the fourth and three runs scored. Drew Fithian had a hit and Ally Myers had a single with a run scored.
“It takes all of us. You’re not going to get the big hit every time, and you have to fight through that,” Kirby said. “Once we got a few runs there early that helped everybody just relax and breathe and be able to play and not feel that pressure. When we can relax and play our game, we can be good.”
With the stretch run coming up for the Marauders, they are looking to finish strong before Sectional 9 tournament play opens the week of May 24 on their home diamond.
Mt. Vernon received the first-round bye and will face Muncie Central in the sectional semifinals. Rival Greenfield-Central and Pendleton Heights are on the other side of the bracket, which could setup a potential rematch in the title game.
“I think we all want to see Pendleton again, for sure,” Kissee said. “And, I think, we’ll do a lot better than we did. We didn’t show them who we truly are and how we truly play.”
The Marauders opened the 2021 season with an 8-5 loss to Zionsville on March 30 before winning nine straight. After losing to 4A No. 1 New Palestine, 3-1, on the road April 22, the Marauders went 3-3 until Friday’s win.
“We talked about it last night, how we peaked early. We were accomplishing a lot early, then all of a sudden we hit this hiccup right in the middle of the season. This little downfall, but you know, good teams always peak again,” Kirby said. “And our time is coming. I told them tonight, bottle this up, our peak is starting and it’s going to keep going.”
