Semifinal rally catapults Monroe City softball team to championship of Moberly Tournament

MOBERLY, Mo. — Never out of the fight.

It’s a motto the Monroe City softball team may soon adopt.

The Panthers trailed Owensville 7-0 after the first inning of Saturday’s semifinal matchup in the Moberly Tournament, but they responded with three runs in the top of the second inning and continued rallying for an 11-9 victory.

It catapulted the Panthers to the title game, where they held off Moberly for a 6-2 victory, the championship and a perfect start to the season.

The tournament began with a 10-2 victory over Palmyra as Audri Youngblood tossed a one-hitter, allowing two runs and five walks while striking out eight. Taitym Foltz went 3 for 3 with an RBI single in the third inning and a two-run, inside-the-park home run in the fifth. Kylee Kauble had three hits and Naaron Hays had two hits with a double.

Against Owensville, the Panthers started their rally by scoring three times in the second inning, highlighted by Emily Spalding’s two-run single. Monroe City manufactured four runs in the third inning to close within 9-7.

In the fifth, the Panthers tied the game on Youngblood’s two-run single and took the lead on Hays’ two-run single with two outs. Hays, Kinley Feummeler, Rylie Mulvaney and Foltz each finished with two hits. 

In the title game, Monroe City seized the lead immediately. Youngblood led off with a single, stole second, took third on Bradi Keller’s single and eventually scored on a bases-loaded walk. Hays scored on a passed ball to make it 2-0.

The Panthers extended the lead with a run in the third , but saw the Spartans score twice in the fifth to close the gap to one run. However, Hays delivered a two-out, two-run single in the sixth as part of a three-run frame that made it an insurmountable lead.

Keller went 3 for 4 and Spalding was 2 for 3 for the Panthers.