North Union defeats Rockford, 6-3, in battle of Warriors

By John Burbridge sports@charlescitypress.com

ROCKFORD — Pitching duels can take a variety of forms.

You can have the standard duel where the counterparts match zero for zero on the scoreboard.

Or it can be more of a one-on-one type of battle where the competing starters hit home runs off each other.

Rockford senior Marissa Norby and North Union senior Kate Anderson engaged in the latter type of duel during a non-conference softball game Monday hosted by the Warriors — the Rockford Warriors.

With North Union up 4-0 after three innings, Anderson took a shutout and no-hitter into the fourth inning only to have both spoiled with the swing of Norby’s bat as her drive to left field got her team on the board.

But North Union got the run back and then some when Anderson hit a two-run homer against Norby in the fifth inning helping the visitors to a 6-3 victory.

After Norby’s homer, Rockford began to get better swings off Anderson, who struck out five of the first six Rockford hitters she faced.

Ella Carroll had two hits including a double as well as an RBI and a run scored; Cameron Johnson also had two hits; and leadoff hitter Jamie Schuster doubled and scored a run for Rockford.

In the bottom of the seventh, the home team Warriors had two runners on base and the tying run at the plate before the game was ended when the home plate umpire ruled interference on the Rockford hitter at the plate when North Union catcher Rory McClellan tried to throw out a runner stealing third.

The hitter was called out, which was the third of the inning and the final of the game.

Rockford, which began the season with six straight victories, fell to 6-2 overall.

North Union improved to 6-1.

NORTH UNION 6, ROCKFORD 3
NORTH UNION          AB R H BI ROCKFORD             AB R H BI
Katelyn Thackery      3 1 1 0 Jamie Schuster        4 1 1 0
Maddie Rolling        3 2 1 2 Emma Ramon            3 0 0 0
Kate Anderson          3 2 1 2 Marissa Norby         4 1 1 1
Shawna Person         2 0 1 1 Ella Carroll          4 1 2 1
Halle Rezac           3 0 1 0 Jenna Paulus          0 0 0 0
Kaylee Tirevold       3 0 0 0 Cameron Johnson      3 0 2 0
Victoria Laubenthal   3 0 0 0 Kayla Carroll         3 0 1 0
Brynn Olson           3 0 0 0 Gabby Keith           2 0 1 1
Shantel Engeman       2 1 0 0 Dawson Schriever      4 0 1 0
                                 Amber Reams 3 0 0 0
TOTALS               25 6 5 5 TOTALS             30 3 9 3
NORTH UNION                   103 020 00 — 6
ROCKFORD                      000 110 1x — 3
LOB–NORTH UNION 5, ROCKFORD 11. 2B–Halle Rezac, Ella
Carroll, Jamie Schuster. HR–Kate Anderson, Marissa Norby. HBP–Shawna
Person, Kayla Carroll.
SO–Katelyn Thackery, Halle Rezac, Shantel Engeman, Brynn
Olson, Kaylee Tirevold, Victoria Laubenthal, Marissa Norby,
Kayla Carroll, Jamie Schuster (3), Emma Ramon (2), Dawson
Schriever (2), Amber Reams (2), Gabby Keith. BB–Katelyn
Thackery, Halle Rezac, Shantel Engeman, Shawna Person,
Kaylee Meyer, Maddie Rolling, Emma Ramon, Jenna Paulus,
Gabby Keith (2).