Freshman Ava Leo Powers Mattoon Softball Past Casey-Westfield, 11-8

The Mattoon varsity softball team utilized a potent offensive attack and a resilient complete-game pitching performance by freshman Ava Leo to secure an 11-8 non-conference home victory over Casey-Westfield on Tuesday.

Despite committing eight errors in the field that led to six unearned runs, the Green Wave’s bats provided more than enough firepower. Mattoon tallied 12 hits as a team, highlighted by explosive multi-run frames in the second, third, and fourth innings to build an insurmountable advantage.

After Casey-Westfield took an early 1-0 lead in the top of the first, Mattoon responded in the bottom of the second with two runs to take the lead for good. The Green Wave expanded their advantage in the third, plating three runs, before blowing the game open with a massive five-run fourth inning.

Freshman Ava Leo was the engine for Mattoon. In the circle, she went the distance, pitching all seven innings while scattering nine hits and striking out six Casey-Westfield batters. Remarkably, only two of the eight runs she allowed were earned. Leo also dominated at the plate, boasting a perfect batting average on the day, highlighted by a home run, a double, and three runs batted in.

Seniors Alyssa Whitley and M. Cowger, along with freshman Alayna Gordon and sophomore M. Starwalt, all contributed heavily to the Mattoon offense, keeping the pressure on Casey-Westfield’s pitching staff. Whitley collected two hits, including a double, and drove in three runs, while Gordon added two hits, including a double, and an RBI. Starwalt and Cowger also finished with two hits apiece, keeping the bases continually active for the Green Wave.

Casey-Westfield refused to go quietly, steadily chipping away at Mattoon’s 10-2 lead. The Warriors scored twice in the fifth inning and mounted a serious comeback threat in the top of the seventh by pushing four runs across the plate. Senior Lucy Moore led the Casey-Westfield offense, going 3-for-4 with an RBI, while sophomore Gabriela Frye went 2-for-4 with a double. However, Leo induced the final outs to shut the door on the rally and secure the win.

Senior Ava Goble took the loss for Casey-Westfield, pitching 3.1 innings and giving up nine earned runs on ten hits.

Game Summary

Score by Innings

Individual Statistics

BATTING:

• Casey-Westfield: L. Moore (Sr) 3-4, 1 RBI, 1 R; G. Frye (So) 2-4, 1 RBI, 1 R, 1 2B; G. Gilbert (So) 1-4, 2 RBI; E. Whitacre (Jr) 1-3, 1 RBI, 1 R; A. Karras (Jr) 1-3, 1 RBI, 1 R; A. Goble (Sr) 0-3, 1 R.

• Mattoon: A. Leo (Fr) 2-2, 1 HR, 1 2B, 3 RBI, 1 R; A. Whitley (Sr) 2-4, 3 RBI, 2 R, 1 2B; A. Gordon (Fr) 2-3, 1 RBI, 1 R, 1 2B; M. Starwalt (So) 2-4, 2 R; M. Cowger (Sr) 2-4, 1 R; A. Perez (So) 1-3, 1 RBI, 1 R; S. Gomez (Fr) 1-3, 1 R.

PITCHING:

• Casey-Westfield: A. Goble (Sr) 3.1 IP, 10 H, 9 R, 9 ER, 1 BB, 3 K; G. Gilbert (So) 1.2 IP, 2 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 1 BB, 0 K; A. Bonds (So) 1.0 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 0 K.

• Mattoon: A. Leo (Fr) – (W), 7.0 IP, 9 H, 8 R, 2 ER, 2 BB, 6 K.

FIELDING:

• Casey-Westfield: 0 Errors, 1 Double Play.

• Mattoon: 8 Errors (A. Gordon 2, A. Perez 2, B. Powers 1, M. Cowger 1, K. McGraw 1, A. Whitley 1).

BASERUNNING:

• Casey-Westfield: Stolen Bases: A. Bonds 2, E. Whitacre 1, G. Gilbert 1.

• Mattoon: Stolen Bases: M. Starwalt 2.