Scott County wins 42nd District crown with a no-hit shutout and a two-run blast
Scott County pitcher Ada Little threw a no-hit shutout and second baseman Karsyn Preston hit a two-run home run as the host Cardinals defeated Bryan Station 4-0 on Wednesday to earn the program’s 16th consecutive 42nd District Softball Tournament championship.
Little shut down a Defenders’ squad that scored 10 runs against Frederick Douglass the night before. The freshman allowed three walks and struck out five.
“Bryan Station, we watched them yesterday, and they had so much energy it was insane,” Preston said. “We were a little hesitant, but we were ready.”
Little was more than ready, and she had a plan.
“Just coming right off the bat at the beginning and not looking past each batter,” said Little, explaining her approach. “Looking at the next strike not the next inning — just getting through like pitch by pitch.”
The Cardinals’ primary starter for two seasons, Little has pitched all but a few dozen innings for Scott County this season with an 18-8 record and an ERA of 1.03.
“She takes a lot of pressure off our defense,” Scott County Coach Billy James said. “And our defense played well.”
Scoreless going into the bottom of the third inning, Little came up to the plate on offense and drew a walk with one out. Delaney Vaughn’s double to left field brought home Little’s courtesy runner, Maddie Skibo, for a 1-0 lead.
Next up, Preston’s blast over the center-field fence made it 3-0 in a hurry.
“I was just trying to put it in play,” Preston said. “I had a full count and was just trying to get something to keep the inning going, and it just happened.”
Scott County scored their fourth run in the sixth inning after a walk to Taylor Reid and two steals by courtesy runner Lauren Jones that set up Kayleigh Bell’s perfect safety squeeze bunt.
Scott County’s players admitted some nerves coming into the finals and a little pressure to keep the Cardinals’ dominance of the 42nd District going. Scott County has never lost a 42nd District softball tournament since it was aligned there in 2006.
“I know we are a lot better than last year, and last year we won,” Little said. “So, I think that made it a lot easier to play our best.”
The Cardinals (20-11) advance to next week’s 11th Region Tournament, which begins Memorial Day with separate quarterfinals at each district champion’s home field before moving to Western Hills for the semifinals Tuesday and finals on Wednesday. Bryan Station (18-15) also advances as a runner-up.
The draw for the tournament is scheduled to be held Friday. The field will also include 41st District champion Great Crossing, 43rd District champion Lafayette, and 44th District champion Madison Central, as well as district runners-up Western Hills, Lexington Catholic and Berea.
This story was originally published May 26, 2022 at 7:47 AM.
