TENINO — The Napavine softball team’s fortunes flipped about as hard as possible two batters into the top of the third inning at Tenino, and the onslaught that followed sent the Tigers back home in a real good mood after a 27-8 win in three innings to start their spring.
Napavine trailed 8-6 after a bit of a disastrous second inning, and while Hayden Kaut reached base to lead off the third a double play two pitches later wiped her out, with Tenino nearly back in the dugout to hit again.
Instead, Grace Gall walked. Avery Schutz singled. Taylen Evander hit an RBI double. And on and on it went, with 23 straight Tigers reaching base in a 21-run inning.
“I really liked our approach at the plate, being aggressive, and I thought our baserunning was really good,” Napavine coach Josh Fay said. “We put pressure on them the whole game.”
Sixteen of Napavine’s 21 hits came in that third inning, including five doubles and a triple by Dani Tupuola, who finished the three-inning game a home run shy of the cycle, going 4 for 4 with a walk, four runs driven in, and three more scored.
The top four of Napavine’s order — Evander, Hannah Fay, Cailyn Milton, and Tupuola — combined to go 13 for 17 with 16 RBIs.
Sophia Hussey and Kiyah Goodwin both had two-hit days for the Beavers and drove in a pair of runs apiece. Seven of Tenino’s eight runs came in the second inning, on three straight bases-loaded walks followed by three straight run-scoring hits.
That gave the Beavers the lead, but it would not last long.
“We’ve just got to build on not making as many mistakes, especially with two outs,” Tenino coach Chris Johnson said. “Once we get past that, we’ll be better, we’ll be fine.”
Tenino is slated to play at Black Hills on Thursday, while Napavine will get another test against a non-league foe when it goes to Montesano on Saturday.
