Quilcene Rangers roll to win in fastpitch opener

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The Rangers put the Loggers on an early bus ride home as the Quilcene girls varsity fastpitch team blanked Darrington 10-0 in their season opener last week.


The game was called after five innings due to the 10-run rule as the Loggers came up empty on offense.
Kayla Ward was a standout in the circle for Quilcene, with the five-year letter-winner pitching a two-hit shutout. Ward struck out eight and allowed no free bases and pitched all five innings.


“Kayla was lights out,” Ranger Coach Mark Thompson said of the star senior. “Her location was great, and she put hitters away early in the count.”


Ward leveled the Logger lineup in 65 pitches, only allowing one runner to reach second base, which was the result of a throwing error.


The Rangers left the Loggers looking over their shoulders early — for the ball. Quilcene had two runs in the first inning and another in the second before unloading in the fourth with four more runs.


Thompson said the fourth stanza was crucial, as the Rangers finished a scoreless third inning with a 3-0 advantage.


Abby Ward smacked a two-run single, with Stormie Elkins hitting an RBI single that doubled the Rangers runs to a 6-0 score.


Elkins also got the walk-off single in the fifth inning, scoring Savannah McBride for the winning run with no outs on the board.


“Offensively, we swung the bats pretty well,” Thompson said.


“We are still a bit undisciplined, but we are also young and I think they will improve in that area pretty quickly,” the coach added. “Our baserunning was a bit of a surprise. For such a young team, I felt they ran pretty aggressive but also pretty smart.”


Savannah McBride was 1-for-2 with two runs for Quilcene.


Abby Ward went 1-for-4 with two RBIs, while Elkins was 2-for-3 with two RBIs


Kayla Ward went 1-for-3 at the plate, with Destiny Hack finishing 1-for-1 with three runs.