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Gillespie softball in sole possession of first place after rout of Staunton

Miners win on Senior Night, Bulldogs rebound against Carlinville

By JACKSON WILSON
Enquirer Democrat Reporter

The Gillespie High School softball Miners are in the driver’s seat for another South Central Conference title.

A 12-0 victory at Staunton May 4 put them there.

The Miners blitzed the Bulldogs with three runs in the opening frame and didn’t look back. Gillespie added four in the second, two in the fourth and three more in the sixth while Emma Gipson twirled a five-hit six-inning masterpiece on the rubber. The sophomore ace issued one free pass and fanned six Dogs.

Chloe Segarra, the lone GHS senior, whacked a home run and finished the day with three hits and four RBI. Gipson also had a dominant afternoon with the bat, striking a long ball of her own and plating three runs on two hits.

Wrigley Releford went 1-for-4 and added two RBI.

Eve Kaduk singled twice and drove in a run.

Evin Frank, Whitney Weller, Savannah Billings, Taylor Nolan and Koral Keehner all managed one hit for Staunton, which hadn’t lost a game in a month.

Miners win on Senior Night, Bulldogs rebound against Carlinville

After a five-day layoff, the Bulldogs went on the road and picked up a 5-0 conference win at Carlinville. Billings went the distance, tossing a four-hit shutout on 102 pitches. The senior was also one of four Bulldogs to contribute an RBI along with Nolan, Keehner and Ele Feldman. The victory moved Staunton to 14-3 on the season and 7-1 in the SCC. Carlinville fell to 12-4 (4-2 SCC).

At about that same time, Gipson was polishing up another gem 15 miles down the road at Ben-Gil Elementary School. Gipson threw a no-hitter and struck out 12 batters along the way as

Gillespie took down Pana by the same score of 5-0 on Segarra’s Senior Night. The Miners took a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the first on an Eve Kaduk safety squeeze, then eventually pulled away with another run in the fifth and a three-spot in the sixth. Gillespie climbed to 23-3 overall and remained perfect in league play at 7-0.