CANNONSBURG, Ky. — Ava Rush's back was aching and Winfield's bats were hurting.
Rush, Portsmouth Notre Dame's sophomore pitcher, baffled the Generals (11-2) on Saturday in a 5-3 victory in the Tri-State Softball Showcase at Boyd County High School.
Rush limited Winfield to three runs, all in the seventh inning, on four hits, struck out eight and walked four to earn the win. She fanned eight of the first nine batters she faced before tiring a bit as her back tightened in her second game of the day. Earlier, she pitched as the Titans beat Ashland 15-1.
"She threw the ball well," Winfield coach Steve Hensley said of Rush. "She did a good job. Her changeup was good. She got ahead in the count, and we either chased that pitch or took it for a strike. It was tough to get all the way back."
Notre Dame (9-0) scored twice in the second inning as Audrey Bach's single drove in two runners. In the third inning, Kennedy Lyon's base hit to center brought home Kate Entler for a 3-0 lead. In the fourth, Entler singled in Bella Rush, and Alayla Soard crossed the plate via a wild pitch.
"My fastball in and out was working for me," Ava Rush said. "I warmed up my changeup this morning and that was nice. It kept them off-balance. I really relied on my fastballs outside."
Rush ran into some trouble in the seventh. Emeri Nelson led off with a double. Mattie Carroll and Kenlie Zigmond then drew walks. Nelson scored on a wild pitch and Natalie Cook, running for Carroll, tallied on a passed ball. Ava Cole's sacrifice fly plated Brooklyn Cole, who had singled.
The Generals, though, victimized themselves. Zigmond was caught in a 2-5-2 rundown and tagged out to end the game.
"The last three innings, they played hard and came back," Hensley said. "We made some bad decisions. Good effort. We just have to get started earlier."
Ava Rush praised her teammates for their errorless effort.
"I really have great defense behind me," Rush said. "It's so good to have such a good infield and outfield. We all want the same goal. We're hungry for the ball."
The Titans featured no one with more than one hit. Bella Rush reached base twice on errors. Entler walked twice and singled once. Maycee Ford walked twice.
Ava Robinson took the loss, allowing four runs, three earned, on three hits with seven walks and two strikeouts in 3 2/3 innings. Nelson finished the game.
WINFIELD 000 000 3 — 3 4 2
PORTSMOUTH NOTRE DAME 021 200 x — 5 3 0
Robinson, Nelson (4) and Cook; A. Rush and K. Entler.
Hitting: (W) Nelson 2B; (PND) Bach 2 RBIs.
