First-year Assumption High School softball coach Suzanne Cates had been seeking a signature victory, and she got one in stunning fashion Thursday.
Assumption 18, Ballard 3.
Led by the big bats of sophomore Maleya Giddens and junior Lauren Campisano, the host Rockets pounded out 15 hits — including eight extra-base hits — to beat Ballard for the first time since 2019.
“I told them, ‘That game right there just means you put a target on your back. If you’re going to play that way and beat somebody in that manner, you’re going to have to take your game to the next level,” said Cates, the former Suzanne Witten and 2000 Kentucky Miss Softball winner at Butler. “We’re going to be a very hard team to beat, but at the same time they’re going to have to be very respectful of Male, Ballard, Manual and those kids.”
Ballard entered the game ranked No. 3 in the state and sporting back-to-back state championships. The Bruins started the season with 11 straight victories but now have lost three in a row, following a 4-3 loss to Mercy on Tuesday and a 6-3 loss to Bullitt East on Wednesday.
It’s the Bruins’ first three-game losing streak since 2016.
“When you hit rock bottom, you have two choices — sink or come right back up,” Ballard coach Alan Jones said. “I know my players. They’ll get it back. It isn’t going to happen overnight … but we just have to focus on Ballard.”
The Bruins struck first in the top of the first inning, getting RBI singles from Mikayla Milby and Kierstyn Smith to take a 3-0 lead.
It was all Assumption from there.
Giddens and Campisano led off the bottom of the first with back-to-back home runs, sparking a five-run inning. The No. 18-ranked Rockets (13-8) sent 13 batters to the plate in the second inning and took advantage of four Ballard errors to score nine runs for a 14-3 lead.
Giddens and Campisano both went 4 for 4, combining for two home runs, three doubles and eight RBIs.
“It’s a different mindset when you’re playing Ballard, versus any other team,” Giddens said. “They’re a great team, and they’re not going to settle. You can’t get down on yourself if you get down 3-0. … We didn’t let up. We know our goal, and we were out for it.”
Lauren Satterly’s RBI double gave the Rockets an 18-3 lead in the third inning, ending the game because of the 15-run mercy rule.
Assumption has just one senior on the roster — left fielder Rylee Sandifer — but Cates said there’s no lack of softball experience.
“They’re all seasoned, all play really, really tough travel ball schedules,” Cates said. “We have freshmen who are playing like juniors. Hopefully it’s coming together at the right time.”
With former Ballard ace pitcher Brooke Gray now at the University of Louisville, the Seventh Region looks to be wide open this season, with Ballard, Assumption, Male and Eastern considered the top contenders.
Assumption is looking to reach the state tournament for the first time since 1998.
“We keep building and keep building and keep building,” Giddens said. “I think this team has a really good shot of making it all the way to state.”
BALLARD 300 - 3 2 5
ASSUMPTION 594 - 18 15 1
WP – Lauren Satterly. LP – Rylee Carter.
Jason Frakes: 502-582-4046; jfrakes@courier-journal.com; Twitter: @kyhighs.
Most Popular
Comments / 0