The Prairie Falcons softball squad won 4-0 against Yelm High School on Thursday, April 24, marking their first shutout win this year at a key point in the season.
The Falcons are embarking on their 3A Greater St. Helens League slate, but head coach Robyn Mask knows they’re playing from behind after the 3-2 loss to Kelso High School earlier in the month. The shutout win came at the right time for the Falcons, though.
“We played really well,” Mask said. “A really well-rounded outing. We had good pitching, we had good defense, and we had timely hitting.”
Mackenzie Moore pitched all seven innings for the Falcons. Moore only gave up two hits, racking up nine strikeouts and walking three Yelm Tornado batters.
“Mackenzie, she comes ready to perform every single day for us, and when we support her, really great things happen,” Mask said. “She’s amazing.”
The Falcons’ run support only needed one, but scoring four runs on nine hits in timely situations was a sign of what’s to come when the league slate picks up these last two weeks of the regular season. The Falcons were led by Ashlee Porter’s three hits and two RBIs. Porter, Payton Miller, and Kayla Scholl hit for extra bases with a double each in the 4-0 win.
The Falcons then followed up with an 26-5 win on Friday, April 25, against Mountain View High School.
“We’re excited for the challenge,” Mask said as the second half of league play heats up. “We’re playing from behind with that loss, but we’re excited for the challenge, and we’re going to be a tough out.”
In the middle of the stretch of six league games to close out the season, the Falcons have a big-time challenge against Mark Morris High School, who sat undefeated in their schedule as of last week. The Falcons face off for a road game against Mark Morris on Tuesday, May 6 at 4 p.m. After last week, the Falcons sat at X-X overall and X-X in league.
“We’re really excited to play Mark Morris because they are a good team, and we want to be pushed with good teams, so we’re excited,” Mask said, adding that the quality matchup will provide the Falcons a great benefit for the upcoming district and state tournaments.
The Falcons played against Evergreen High School on Monday, April 28, but results were unavailable at press time. They next play at home two straight days, first against Mountain View High School on Wednesday, April 30 at 4:30 p.m. and against first place Kelso High School on Thursday, May 1 at 4:30 p.m.
