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That was Easy: Lionettes cruise into regional quarterfinals with sweep of Hillcrest
Photo courtesy of John Tyler of buzzzphotos.com - After taking their opening-round playoff series against Carrollton Creekview to Game 3, the Lionettes had a much easier time with area-round opponent Dallas Hillcrest. McKinney swept Hillcrest with a 17-0 win Thursday and 13-0 win Friday to draw Rockwall in the regional quarterfinals.
By Andrew Snyder, asnyder@starlocalnews.com
FRISCO—The playoffs are supposed to get more difficult as they progress, but after taking a best-of-3 series with Carrollton Creekview to the limit in the opening round, the McKinney softball team shredded that perception with a two-game sweep of Dallas Hillcrest.
In this case, sweep is a euphemism. The Lionettes opened the series Thursday with a 17-0 rout of Hillcrest before cutting the series short with a 13-0 win Friday. After taking a full 27 innings to get past Creekview, they shaved more than a full game from that count when advancing to the regional quarterfinals, as each of their area-round wins came via run-rule.
“My team played pretty well,” said Jeremy Greenway, McKinney head coach. “Sometimes in sports it’s tough to maintain your level of intensity when you’re playing a team that struggles a little bit. My team did about as well as I've seen any McKinney team to still try to play to their level.”
The Lionettes (22-15) put the game out of reach at the first opportunity by scoring 11 runs on six hits in the bottom of the first. They batted around and then some that frame, bringing 16 players to the plate. The biggest hit of the inning was a bases-clearing double from Courtney Derrick, who reached on an error to open the frame. Lauren McQuestion, Jazsmine Nelson, April Rousey and Thomas also contributed RBI singles.
McKinney added another run in the second on an RBI single from Megan Rivero, a JV call-up who went 2-for-2 at the plate with a pair of singles. Up 12-0 after that hit, the Lionettes used the blowout to empty their bench and score future varsity players a few innings of playoff softball.
“Megan is a sophomore,” Greenway said. “Even coming in as a freshman she hit the ball pretty well. She's one of those kids that's probably going to need to step up next year, and being able to get her some playing time helps.
“That's two days in-a-row in a playoff situation where every kid got to play. We moved up three JV kids and they got to play. It was good to be able to do that, especially in a playoff situation.”
The Lionettes tallied 12 hits on the night and took advantage of the limited range of the Hillcrest infield with a number of bloop singles. Rousey was a perfect 2-for-2 at the plate with a pair of singles and a walk.
Friday's win continued an offensive onslaught the Lionettes began with a 19-hit performance Thursday. They scored six runs in the third and seven in the fourth to end that game prematurely and help hasten their advancement to the next round.
McKinney will face district rival Rockwall in the regional quarterfinals. The Lady Yellowjackets went 13-1 during league play and swept the Lionettes (3-1, 8-2). They beat Frisco Centennial in bi-district play and Seagoville in the area round to advance.
“They're tough to beat,” Greenway said. “You have to play well. What's nice about them is that if you win, you earned it.”
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