SEAN BOSTON
Hutch Post
BUHLER, Kan. — The Buhler High School softball team hit seven home runs in it's doubleheader sweep of Augusta on Thursday afternoon at Wheatland Park.
The Crusaders are now 13-3 on the season, while the Orioles fall to 5-9.
Game 1 — Buhler 18, Augusta 17
In a back-and-forth slugfest, Buhler walked it off in extra innings to outlast the visiting Orioles, 18-17, on Thursday. Alexa Adame delivered the game-winning single in the bottom of the eighth to score the decisive run.
The Lady Crusaders trailed throughout much of the game before erupting in the bottom of the seventh with four home runs, including a game-tying solo shot to center by Tori Tustian to even the score at 17. That set the stage for Adame’s heroics one inning later.
Annistyn Cram powered Buhler’s offense with five RBIs, going 2-for-4. Tustian and Adame each collected three hits, while Ella Thiessen, Maddie Stallman, Sydney Quint, Taylor Kesinger and Macy Miller all added multi-hit performances as part of a 19-hit night for the Crusaders. Buhler also swiped four bases and turned two double plays defensively.
Kesinger went the distance in the circle for Buhler, giving up 19 hits and 17 runs (12 earned) while striking out five and walking three over eight innings.
The Orioles came out swinging, scoring six runs in the top of the first. Bracyn Landers doubled in two, Harley Dehner and Chloe Wignall each added RBI doubles, and Becca Skov and Ragan Pfeifer chipped in with RBI singles. Landers later hit a three-run homer in the fifth and Dehner added a solo shot in the seventh to give the Orioles a late edge.
Landers finished 3-for-6 with five RBIs to pace the Orioles, who also collected 19 hits. Dehner, Skov, and Landers all recorded three-hit games, while Pfeifer, Wignall, Camrea Riley, and Rylee Pfeifer had multiple hits. Wignall and Pfeifer each stole multiple bases as the Orioles totaled five steals on the night.
Riley took the loss in relief, allowing six runs (five earned) in 1.1 innings. Starter Rylee Sanger gave up 14 hits and 12 runs (nine earned) over six innings.
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Game 2 — Buhler 14, Augusta 0
Sydney Quint recorded three hits, including a three-run homer, and Tori Tustian blasted a grand slam as Buhler cruised past the visiting Orioles, 14-0, on Thursday to cap a doubleheader sweep.
Quint finished 3-for-4 with a single in the first, a three-run shot to center in the second, and another base hit in the fourth. The Lady Crusaders tallied 16 hits overall, with eight coming in the decisive fourth inning, when they pushed across eight runs.
Ella Thiessen, Alexa Adame, Lilly Horne, and Annistyn Cram each delivered RBI singles in the fourth before Tustian cleared the bases with a grand slam to center. Buhler also scored in the first on a sacrifice bunt by Thiessen and added three more in the second on Quint’s homer. Cram tacked on a two-run homer to right in the third inning.
Horne picked up the win in the circle, tossing five shutout innings. She allowed just three hits while striking out three and walking none. Aaliyah Mitchell took the loss for the Orioles, surrendering 14 runs on 15 hits over three innings.
Tustian drove in four runs to lead Buhler, while Thiessen, Adame, Taylor Kesinger, Macy Miller, Cram and Horne all recorded multiple hits. The Crusaders also played clean defense, turning a double play and committing no errors. Maddie Stallman led the team with three defensive putouts.
Harley Dehner, Bracyn Landers, and Mitchell each had a hit for the Orioles, who also turned a double play and played error-free defense. Landers made a team-high seven plays in the field.
Buhler returns to action Thursday with a road game at Mulvane.