Lady Leps Win 24-0

Back-to-Back-to-Back Inside-the-Park Homers Fuel Big Win

How well were things going for the Lady Leps in their 24-0 victory on the district opener Friday against Austin Eastside?

The La Grange girls cranked out 21 hits.

Eight different players had an extra base hit.

Marissa Gonzales pitched a no-hitter.

But maybe the most remarkable, and rarest, feat accomplished by the Lady Leps Friday was back-to-back-to-back inside the park home runs by Alyssa Dela Rosa, Kailee Jones and Natalie Blackwell.

“We’re blessed with a lot of speed this year, why not use it when you have it? “ said La Grange head coach Amanda Arlund after the game.

Jones and Alyssa Dela Rosa each hit two inside-the-park homers.

In addition to her inside-the-parker, Blackwell actually hit one over the fence but the play was negated because a La Grange runner left the base before the pitch, an instant out that ended the second inning.

La Grange actually resorted to leaving base intentionally to get outs because Eastside was having trouble getting three outs in an inning, and the game was getting out of hand fast.

“Usually I don’t swing at the first pitch. I decided to swing. It was there,” Blackwell said. “It was funny how that happened.”

Meanwhile, La Grange’s Gonzales struck out five and didn’t allow a hit, the second nohitter of the season for the freshman.

“I’m really excited about it. It’s not every day you get to do that kind of thing,” Gonzales said.

Eastside didn’t put up much of a fight, but even against tougher teams, this year’s Lady Leps team has excelled.

They now have a 14-4 record and 1-0 mark in district heading into Tuesday’s game at Giddings at 6:45 p.m.

“We’ve been hitting the ball really well,” Arlund said. “I told them we’d have to out-hit teams if we wanted to win the big games. Even in the games we’ve lost we’ve still hit the ball well. These girls have proved that when they step on the field, they are ready to play.”