The Lady Wildcats extended their late-season winning streak to eight games thanks to two easy wins and a nail-biter last week.
Hosting Hayden on Wednesday of last week, Joseph City scored eight runs in the first inning. They added three more in the second and finished off the visiting Lobos with six runs in the fourth of the 17-1 final outcome.
Maddy Powers went 3 for 3, with a triple and a double. Kate Edwards was 2 for 2, with a home run. Kadence Armstrong went 2 for 2, with a home run. Gabby Jesmer was also 2 for 2, with a homer. Kayle James went 2 for 3, with a double. Kassidy Juarez was 1 for 4, with a double. Staisha Murdock went 2 for 3; Samantha Jesmer, 1 for 1; and Amber Neill and Cy Yazzie each went 1 for 1.
Kayle James worked three innings in the circle, allowing just one hit with two walks and five strikeouts. April Neill pitched two innings, giving up one run with two walks and four strikeouts.
Hosting the Mohave Accelerated Patriots on Thursday, the Wildcats built a five-run lead and then held on to win the game 7-6. Joseph City led 5-1 after the first inning and they were on top 7-1 after four innings. The Patriots chipped away at the lead with two in the fifth and added two more in the top of the seventh before the Wildcats escaped with the one-run win.
Kate Edwards went 2 for 2, with a double. Maddy Powers was 2 for 4, with a double. Kassidy Juarez went 1 for 4, with a double as did Kayle James. Staisha Murdock went 1 for 3, Kadence Armstrong was 2 for 3 and Gabby Jesmer went 1 for 3.
Kayle James pitched the first six innings, giving up five runs on five hits with a pair of walks and four strikeouts. April Neill pitched the final inning allowing one run with one walk.
Hosting Show Low on Saturday, the Lady Wildcats got back to their controlling ways with a 17-5 win over the 3A Cougars. Joseph City scored five in the first and added two in the third to lead by seven. Show Low cut into that lead with four runs in the top of the fourth. The Wildcats answered with three in the fourth then added another four in the fifth and three in the sixth cruising to the easy win.
Joseph City played long ball with six total home runs. Gabby Jesmer went 2 for 4, with two home runs. Kassidy Juarez was 3 for 4, with two home runs. Kayle James went 2 for 5, with one home run. Kadence Armstrong was 3 for 4, with a home run and a double. April Neill went 3 for 3; Kate Edwards, 1 for 3; and Maddy Powers went 1 for 5.
Kayle James pitched five innings giving up five runs on five hits with two walks and three strikeouts. April Neill pitched one inning with just one hit and one strikeout.
Joseph City will close out its regular season on Tuesday, with a trip to Mogollon. The second-ranked Wildcats will host a first-round 1A state playoff game at 4 p.m. on Friday. Their opponent won’t be known until the 1A brackets are released following Tuesday’s games. If they can advance to the second round, that game would also be at Joseph City on May 5.
