The Lebanon Lady ‘Jackets fought hard in the first round of the Missouri Class 5 District 5 tournament but fell short to state-ranked Capital City on Tuesday in Sedalia, 6-5.
After allowing five runs through two innings, LHS began to rally in the fourth inning with an RBI single from sophomore Taylor Rodden that plated two runs. In the fifth inning, sophomore Raegan McCowan added a double that scored two runs, while McKinley Rodden hit a single to score a run to tie the game.
The Cavaliers got the bottom half of the fifth inning started with a triple to left field, and Emily Steiferman drove the run home with a sacrifice fly to cap the scoring.
In one of the most talented districts in the entire state, Lebanon managed to go wire-to-wire with a Capital City team that had defeated them 14-4 earlier in the year. LHS finishes their season with 18 wins, the most since 1998, per coach Stan Crum.
“We had an outstanding year and took the next step towards being a competitive team every time we step on the field,” he stated. “We played very well against some of the better teams in the region this year, and I believe the best is yet to come from this group.
“It was the first time the program had won 18 games since Lebanon went to the Final Four in 1998, where they won 23 games that season.”
When asked about the key differences this year compared to last year with pretty much the same group, Crum mentioned the team's defense being more consistent this fall compared to other years.
“We have improved tremendously on the defensive side of things,” he said. “We have cut our error total for the second consecutive year, and it shows in our win total. We had some freshmen step in and contribute right away, and the growth they experienced will pay dividends in the future.
For the complete story, see the Saturday edition of the Laclede County Record.
