Photo: Brian McLean (Head coach Cassie Crabtree/3B Kennedy Bradley)
BY BRIAN GOSSET
X – @gosset41
X – @gmsportsmedia1
In a matchup of 2024 state champions, the home team Melissa Cardinals beat the Bentonville Tigers 5-3 on Saturday. Sophomore pitcher Eloisa Maes allowed two walks and struck out nine in a complete game effort.
The Cardinals improved to 29-0 on the season and will open the UIL playoffs this week with a 5A D1 bi-district match against Texarkana Texas High. Melissa is ranked the #1 team in the nation according to MaxPreps and rides a 44-game winning streak dating back to last season.
Melissa won the 5A state title.
The Tigers won the 6A title in Arkansas last season and is currently ranked the #1 team in Arkansas by MaxPreps. They sport a 15-2 record while the loss snapped a 13-game win streak.
On Saturday, Melissa scored twice in the second inning to grab a 2-1 lead and added three in the third to go up 5-1. Paisley Needham (Grayson College) hit her eighth home run of the season with two hits and three runs batted in. Izzy Gonzales added a double and two RBIs while Melissa had nine hits as a team. Gabby Kuerhler added two hits and sophomore catcher Lulu Adrian went 3 for 3 with a triple.
Bentonville led 1-0 in the first after Maes loaded the bases and hit a batter. But the sophomore came back and got her second strikeout to end the jam.
Adrian led off the second with a single to center and two batters later, Needham blasted a two-run home run to deep center. Gonzales doubled two in during the third and Needham reached on an error as Gonzales scored to make it 5-1.
The Tigers led off the top of the seventh with a single and added a run with one out to pull within 5-2. Maes got the second out before allowing three straight singles – the third being a two-runner that made it 5-3. Maes followed it with her ninth K of the game to give the Cards the victory and moved her record to 22-0.
