Lady Sandite Softball defeats Bixby 13-1 and will play District Championship Thursday

Photo: Scott Emigh

By: Scott Emigh, Editor-in-Chief

The Charles Page High School varsity softball team (20-5, 11-2) played a district double-header against the Bixby Lady Spartans (15-13, 10-4) Tuesday at home and split the games. After winning the first game 13-1, the Sandites couldn't bring in a run in the second game and lost 1-0. Fortunately, they only needed one win to stay alive in the race for a district title. 

The Sandites jumped on the Spartans quick and early as Oklahoma State commit Sydney Pennington drew a walk in the top of the first, reached third on a sacrifice from Jessica Collins, and scored after tagging up on a fly out by Elizabeth Luttrell. Soon after, Cameron Clemons singled to score Collins and Makenna Skaggs for the 3-0 advantage. Felicity Horn scored on a failed fielder's choice, and Sabrina Usher reached on an error to score Clemons and Kimi Presnell to cap off the inning 6-0 after being put out at second.

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Sophomore Jacie Taber doubled in the top of the second inning to score Pennington, then came home with Skaggs on a single from Horn. She batted in another pair of runs in the top of the third, scoring Pennington and Usher on a single for the 11-0 lead.

Usher hit a double to start off the fifth inning and scored on a home run from Pennington, her ninth this season.

The Spartans hit their first run of the game in the bottom of the fifth, a double from Adrianna Forbus, to score Mia Gates. It would be their only run of the game, however, and the Sandites won it 13-1 after a five-inning run-rule.

Junior pitcher Madelyn Blair (8-2) picked up her sixth straight win on the mound with only one hit and two walks against four strikeouts and one run. She also hit two singles in the game.

The second leg of the double-header was an anomaly as the Sandites were shutout for only the third time this season, despite landing five base-hits and putting ten runners on base over the course of the game. 

In the first inning, Horn reached on an error and was joined by Pennington, who walked. Both were left stranded.

The Spartans scored their first and only run of the game in the top of the second with a home run from Meredith Iden. Bixby loaded the bases from there as Forbus was hit by the pitch, Brooklyn Lemon hit a single, and Kyndal Pirtle walked to load the bases. Sophomore pitcher Jacie Taber was able to save the inning, however, striking out Teri Pogue swinging. 

Presnell was stranded on a single in the bottom of the second. Sarah Tyree was stranded after a triple in the top of the third. Blair and Taber both singled in the bottom of the fourth, but Blair was caught in a double play and Taber was stranded. Horn reached on error once again in the bottom of the fifth, and Pennington walked in the sixth.

The Sandites threatened again in the bottom of the seventh. After Clemons grounded out and Jensen Arnold struck out looking, Usher drew a walk and Horn singled. Collins was next to the plate and also singled, but Usher was caught advancing on the play and the game was brought to an end.

Taber (8-3) pitched a career-best eleven strikeouts while giving up only four hits and two walks. She averages less than one run per game with five shutouts this season. This is her third double-digit strikeout game this season.

The Sandites' 11-2 district record is surpassed only by Yukon at 12-1. However, the Sandites and Millers will play the final district match for both teams Thursday at 4:00 p.m. at the Sandite Softball Complex. Sand Springs has already defeated Yukon once this season, 9-1 at the Miller's home turf. If the girls can pull off the repeat, they will match the Millers' record and win the district on head-to-head results. 

Lady Sandite Softball beats Enid by combined 34-1 in district double header

By: Scott Emigh, Editor-in-Chief

The Charles Page High School varsity softball team (19-4, 10-1) jumped on their opponents hard and early in a Thursday afternoon double-header at Enid (6-17, 0-11). The Pacers managed only one hit in the first game and almost every Lady Sandite there scored a run.

The Sandites piled on six runs in the first inning alone. Freshman Felicity Horn hit a leadoff triple and scored on a wild pitch. Jacie Taber singled to score Sydney Pennington, Kimi Presnell singled to score Madelyn Blair, and Cameron Clemons capped the inning off with a three-run double to score Elizabeth Luttrell, Taber, and Presnell.

Taber (8-2) went to the mound in game one and her first three pitches were all strikes, setting the tone for yet another powerful performance from the impressive sophomore.

Pennington hit a home run to start off the second inning and Madelyn Blair scored on a groundout by Taber. Presnell reached on a fielder's choice to score Luttrell, and Clemons singled to bring in Presnell for the 10-0 advantage.

Pennington tacked on two more runs in the top of the third, scoring Makenna Skaggs on a double before coming in on a single from Luttrell.

In the top of the fourth, freshman Sabrina Usher singled and scored on an error. 

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Located in the Springs Village shopping center, next to Papa Pat's BBQ.

The top of the fifth was another explosive inning as Blair singled and scored on an error. Taber brought in Luttrell on a single and Jensen Arnold doubled to score Taber. Usher grounded out to score Presnell, Skaggs grounded out to score Arnold, and the Sandites had an 18-0 lead.

Despite putting two on base in the bottom of the inning, the Pacers were unable to score and the game ended by run-rule.

Game two was equally devastating for the home team. It took the Sandites till the second inning to get on the scoreboard, but they made it up for it with ten runs.

Luttrell doubled to start the inning and came in on a two-run homer by Taber. Clemons reached on an error to score Presnell and from there the girls went on a streak of doubles. Collins doubled to score Clemons, Pennington doubled to score Collins and Makenna Skaggs, and Madelyn Blair doubled to score Pennington. Luttrell doubled to score Usher, who ran courtesy for Blair. Taber reached on an error to bring in Luttrell, and Clemons wrapped things up with a double to score Taber.

Pennington smacked a two-run double in the bottom of the third to score Horn and Collins.

Enid finally got on the board in the top of the fourth with a single by Ruth Ramirez to score Haylee Schwandt, but it would be the lone run of the evening for the Pacers.

In the bottom of the inning, the Sandites piled on the offense as Presnell doubled and scored on a single from Horn. Pennington singled to score Horn, Blair doubled to score Collins and Pennington, and the Sandites led 16-1.

The Pacers failed to get on base in the top of the fifth and the Sandites secured the win. 

Madelyn Blair (6-2) got the win on the mound with only four hits against three strikeouts.

The Sandites were previously on a fourteen-game win-streak before having their Senior Night spoiled by Jenks (11-10, 7-6) on Tuesday. Collins and Taber were the only girls to land hits in the 1-0 loss. Taber got the loss in that game despite giving up only four hits against three strikeouts and zero earned runs.

The Lady Sandites will return to action next Monday when they travel to Bixby (14-10, 9-3) for a district makeup game. They will then host the Lady Spartans Tuesday night.

Sydney Pennington hits 3 homeruns in double-header victories over Ponca; Sandites win 14th straight

By: Virgil Noah, Staff Writer

The runs came early and they came often in the Charles Page High School Varsity Softball team's (17-3, 8-0) district doubleheader against Ponca City (14-10, 2-5). The Lady Sandites won both games handily with a 10-0 five-inning run-rule victory in the first leg, and a 15-3 win in the second match-up which went the full seven innings.

Felicity Horn got scoring underway for the day when she singled and later scored on an error in the first inning of game one.

Ponca City loaded the bases in the second, but Madelyn Blair (6-2) forced Kylie Hopkins into a two-out popup which got the Lady Sandites out of the inning without allowing any runs. Jacie Taber hit an RBI double to left center which scored Cameron Clemons in the second inning.

Oklahoma State University commit Sydney Pennington hit the first of three home runs on the night in the home half of the third inning. Freshman Sabrina Usher hit an RBI double allowing Madelyn Blair to score, and scored a run on an errant throw to push the lead to 5-0.  Sand Springs scored the final five runs in the fourth inning on to put the game away, with Pennington, Usher, Madelyn Blair, and Clemons each adding an RBI to their totals.

Madelyn Blair picked up the win on the mound for the Lady Sandites, pitching five shutout innings, allowing just 6 hits. 

Game two saw Sand Springs getting off to an even quicker start, when Pennington sent a towering fly ball over the center field fence for a three-run-homer. Clemons scored on an error and Kimi Presnell picked up an RBI single in the third inning and lead 5-0 when Ponca City finally got on the board in their half of the third. Camenda Osborn doubled in a run to cut the lead to 5-1 and gave the Lady Cats some life. 

The Lady Sandites substituted Elizabeth "Lyz" Luttrell into the game and she quickly added an RBI single to make the score 6-1, and Taber added an RBI on a sacrifice fly to make the lead 7-1. The Lady Cats added another pair of runs to their score on RBI doubles by Osborn and pitcher Kelci Hasenfratz.

With the score 7-3 the Charles Page offense went back to work and didn't look back scoring the final 8 runs of the contest. Pennington led the way in game two with four RBI, Luttrell added three, Jensen Arnold and Presnell each had two. 

Pennington (5-0) picked up the win on the mound pitching all seven innings, surrendering three runs on seven hits and striking out four batters.

The Lady Sandite offense was hot all night, scoring at least one run in eleven of twelve innings played. The pair of victories pushed the Sand Springs win streak to fourteen games, including a 9-1 triumph over former district No. 1 Yukon. Sand Springs is the only undefeated team remaining in District 6A-3. 

The Lady Sandites will return to action Friday at 1:20 p.m. when they play 3A Perry (10-17) on field #9 at Bentley Park in the Bixby Tournament.

Lady Sandite Softball mid-season update: stats and preview of Bixby Tournament

By: Scott Emigh, Editor-in-Chief

The Charles Page High School varsity softball team (15-3, 6-0) is riding a twelve-game winning streak and just put a big win in the books with a 9-1 defeat of former district No. 1 Yukon. The Lady Sandites have proven they have the skillset necessary to make another State Championship run, but the season is far from over. Every team knows that once you reach the number one spot, you paint a target on your back and all eyes are on you.

After graduating two All-State players and six starting seniors last year, the Lady Sandites were in need of some fresh talent to bolster the ranks led by Sydney Pennington, Jessica Collins, and Rachel Blair. They found that talent in freshmen Felicity Horn and Sabrina Usher. Jacie Taber and Madelyn Blair have also been crucial in filling the void left by Kennedy “Goose” Salyers at the mound.

The Lady Sandites had a lukewarm start to the season as they were still adjusting to the new team dynamic. They split their first two games at the Claremore Festival, winning the opener 13-0 over Mannford, but dropping game two 5-0 to Coweta.

By the end of the Broken Arrow Tournament they had found their rhythm 

They dropped a close 2-1 game to Owasso, defeated the defending State Champions from Choctaw 4-1, and took down Putnam City North 3-1. Durant dealt the girls a 6-2 loss, but that was the last time this season anyone has beaten the Lady Sandites.

The girls won their next two games to place fifth of sixteen teams in the tournament, and haven’t lost a game since. They won six-straight shutouts and dethroned Yukon to become the only undefeated team remaining in District 6A-3.

The girls have the opportunity to pick up two more district wins tonight at home when they take on the Ponca City Wild Cats (14-8, 2-3) at 5:00 p.m.. The two teams only have a couple of mutual opponents. Ponca was run-ruled twice by Yukon, and fell 9-2 to Jenks, who the Sandites defeated 10-2.

From there, the girls will travel to the Bixby Spartan Tournament this Friday. They will play 3A Perry (10-17) at 1:20 p.m. on field #9 at Bentley Park. The teams only have one mutual opponent this far. The Maroons fell 8-1 to Mannford a few weeks ago. They also lost 12-0 to Ponca City.

The Sandites will take on the host team at 3:00 p.m. Friday on field #9. The Spartans (8-10, 7-3) are third in district and haven’t played Sand Springs yet, but they lost two games to Yukon and one to Sapulpa.

On Saturday Sand Springs will play 4A Cushing (11-8) at 10:00 a.m. on Field #11 and 5A Skiatook (7-9) at 1:20 p.m. on field #9.

Also in the tournament is Edmond Memorial (6-10), 5A Collinsville (20-2), Glenpool (10-8), Inola (8-11), and Sapulpa (4-13). Collinsville is the biggest threat in the tournament. The defending 5A State Champions are undefeated in their district and have only given up two losses this season. Southmoore defeated them 9-0 and Carl Albert won a close one 1-0. Both Southmoore and Carl Albert were State Semi-Finalists in their divisions last year.

The first round of bracket games will be played at 3:00 p.m. Saturday and the finals and consolation finals will be played at 4:40 p.m.

Sydney Pennington has played all 18 games and is .490 batting, .863 slugging, and has a .574 OBP with 14 singles, 6 doubles, 4 homeruns, 1 stolen base, 18 runs, and 14 RBI on 51 at-bats. She is 3-0 from the mound this year and holds a 0.60 ERA and .900 WHIP. She’s given up only 3 runs and 11 hits against 14 strikeouts and pitches 61% strikes.

Jessica Collins has played all 18 games and is .327 batting, .346 slugging, and has a .426 OBP with 16 singles, 1 double, 6 sacrifices, 3 stolen bases, 20 runs, and 10 RBI on 52 at-bats.

Sabrina Usher has played all 18 games and is .300 batting, .500 slugging, and has a .340 OBP with 8 singles, 6 doubles, 1 home run, 1 sacrifice, 1 stole base, 8 runs, and 11 RBI on 50 at-bats.

Cameron Clemons has played all 18 games and is .273 batting, .318 slugging, and has a .360 OBP with 9 singles, 3 doubles, 3 sacrifices, 1 stolen base, 9 runs, and 4 RBI on 44 at-bats.

Madelyn Blair has played all 18 games and is .259 batting, .352 slugging, and has a .344 OBP with 9 singles, 5 doubles, 2 sacrifices, and 6 runs on 54 at-bats. She is 5-2 from the mound this season and holds a 1.77 ERA and 1.038 WHIP. She has given up only 10 runs and 25 hits against 31 strikeouts and pitches 71% strikes.  

Jacie Taber has played all 18 games and is .226 batting, .283 slugging, and has a .268 OBP with 9 singles, 3 doubles, 3 sacrifices, 2 stolen bases, 6 runs, and 6 RBI on 53 at-bats. She is 7-1 from the mound this season and holds a 1.10 ERA and 1.059 WHIP. She has given up only 8 runs and 29 hits against 48 strikeouts and pitches 69% strikes.

Kimi Presnell has played all 18 games and is .170 batting, .170 slugging, and has a .278 OBP with 8 singles, 8 doubles, 2 sacrifices, 7 stolen bases, 6 runs, and 3 RBI on 47 at-bats.

Rachel Blair has played 17 games and is .182 batting, .182 slugging, and has a .280 OBP with 8 singles, 3 sacrifices, 8 runs, and 3 RBI on 44 at-bats.

Felicity Horn has played 16 games and is .244 batting, .341 slugging, and has a .456 OBP with 6 singles, 4 doubles, 4 sacrifices, 1 stolen base, 13 runs, and 5 RBI on 41 at-bats.

Makenna Skaggs has played 5 games and is .429 batting, .429 slugging, and has a .500 OBP with 3 singles, 5 runs, and 1 RBI on 7 at-bats.

Elizabeth Luttrell has played 3 games and is .200 batting, .200 slugging, and has a .333 OBP with 1 single on 5 at-bats.

Jensen Arnold has played 1 game and is 1.000 batting, 2.000 slugging, and has a 1.000 OBP with 1 double and 1 run on 1 at-bat. 

Lady Sandite Softball wins 12-straight, takes #1 spot in district with 9-1 defeat of Yukon

By: Scott Emigh, Editor-in-Chief

The Charles Page High School varsity Softball team (15-3, 6-0) withstood a lot of rain last week, but they didn't get rusty. After having rain-outs against Bixby and Yukon, the girls went eleven days without a game. Some teams might get soggy, but not the Lady Sandites.

This is the second year in a row that Sand Springs and Yukon met while both teams were undefeated in district play. Last year the Millerettes (18-3, 10-1) got the upper hand and spoiled an otherwise spotless season in Sandite district play. This time it was the Sandites who broke Yukon's nine-straight district win-streak. 

Sophomore standout Jacie Taber (7-1) got her sixth-straight win on the mound, giving up only five hits and one run against four strikeouts. Seniors Sydney Pennington and Jessica Collins led the offense. Each scored two runs and two RBI. Collins had three hits on four at-bats and Pennington had two hits on three at-bats, and one home run.

The Sandites took the lead in the top of the first, loading the bases with the first three batters. Freshman Felicity Horn scored on a wild pitch before Yukon pitcher Breley Webb found her groove and struck out Madelyn Blair and Sabrina Usher. Taber grounded out to second and the Millerettes warded off the Sandite tide.

The Sandite defense was quick to put Yukon on notice as Taber struck out Rylee Uhr, Madelyn Blair caught a popup, and Cameron Clemons scooped up a hard grounder at third for the putout at first.

In the second inning there was no stopping the Sandites. Webb struck out Kimi Presnell to start, but then the bats came alive. Clemons doubled, Rachel Blair singled, and Horn hit a sacrifice fly to bring in Clemons. Collins singled to score Blair, and Pennington hit her fourth home run of the season to make it 5-0.

The Millerettes got on the board in the bottom of the second with a home run from Hannah Franklin, but that would be the lone score of the evening for the Yukon team.

In the top of the fourth Clemons reached on an error and scored on a single from Collins, who was in turn brought in on a double from Madelyn Blair. Pennington singled before Blair's at-bat and advanced home on a throw for the 8-1 advantage.

In the top of the seventh Madelyn Blair, Usher, and Taber all singled to load the bases. Presnell hit a sacrifice fly to bring in Blair, but the other runners were left stranded. The home team managed to land a single in the bottom of the inning, but was unable to stage a come-back attempt.

The Lady Sandites still have eight district games left, including a rematch with Yukon, but for now they'll be sailing high on a twelve game winning streak as the only undefeated team remaining in district 6A-3. 

The girls will return to action Thursday afternoon in a home double header against district opponent Ponca City. First game starts at 5:00 p.m.

Sydney Pennington named to ASA All Star Team, will play Jr Olympic Cup

By: Scott Emigh, Editor-in-Chief

Charles Page High School senior Sydney Pennington will be competing at the 2016 USA Softball Junior Olympic Cup in Powder Springs, Georgia this Tuesday. 64 teams will battle this week in an invitational tournament, highlighted by a twelve-inning exhibition between the US Olympic Team and the ASA All Star Team. The Oklahoma State University-committed player finished her junior fast pitch season with a .458 batting average, 2.28 ERA, and 10-7 record from the mound. 

The CPHS fast pitch team won their Regional Championship and made it to the OSSAA 6A State Finals where they lost 4-3 to Choctaw. Since then, Pennington's Tulsa Elite team placed ninth at the USA Elite Select Championship Showcase in Shawnee, Kansas and were only one win away from the World Championship quarterfinals.