All season long, Center Grove softball coach Alyssa Coleman has preached to her team the benefits of aggression.
Be aggressive on pitches, hitting and baserunning and good things will happen.
Against visiting Cathedral, good things didn’t happen. Great things did.
The Trojans pounded out 15 hits, six of them for extra bases, had three stolen bases and blasted the No. 5 Fighting Irish 15-2 in five innings on Wednesday afternoon.
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It was Center Grove’s third straight win and it snapped a four-game Irish win streak in the process.
Seven Trojan batters had hits, with six of them getting two or more.
That resulted in Center Grove scoring in every inning to put the game away early.
“We’ve been harping on them about being aggressive, but we kind of simplified it,” Coleman said. “We told them go get bases, go take every base you can and be more aggressive than the other team and it’s going to pay off.”
Cathedral (9-2) opened the game with a run and three hits off starter Abby Herbst. Center Grove, however, tested the aggression theory when it came to the plate.
Three hits and four runs later, the theory became fact, especially when the Trojans followed that with innings of four and six runs to effectively put the game away.
Herbst’s pitching also helped, as she scattered seven hits and struck out six Irish batters.
“We finally let loose and dared to test it and they were willing to risk it,” Coleman said. “This was a huge game for us. Our team’s been waiting to explode on a good team, and it was about time.”
Was it the Trojans’ best so far this season?
“It was 100 percent our best,” Coleman said.
Senior Piper Belden and junior Kennedy Bader had three hits apiece. Belden nearly hit for the cycle, smacking, in order, a single, double and triple. She also scored four runs and had two stolen bases. Bader had a double, scored twice and had three RBIs.
Herbst helped her own cause with two hits and three RBIs, while freshman Lex Warner provided the muscle with a double and a three-run home run to left field in that six-run third inning. Warner ended up with four RBIs.
Juniors Lexi Fair and Addison Osborn also had two hits each, and Alexis Rudd had three RBIs.
“We knew (Cathedral) would be tough, but we were really mentally prepared,” Belden said. “Tonight, we worked well as a team. (Coleman) always pushes for aggressive baserunning and to turn singles into doubles, and so I really put that into play and took her advice.
“It really turned out well.”
On paper this might have been considered an upset, but not for the Trojans and Coleman. Winning wasn’t a surprise, but in the way they did it was.
“I expected to win, but I didn’t expect this (score), but I’m pretty darn proud,” Coleman said. “They made a statement.”
Center Grove (9-2) travels to Avon today.
