Madysen B. Authors 10-Strikeout Shutout for Mid Illini

June 23, 2018

By The Dub Report

Madysen B. did not merely keep Livingston County Extreme off the scoreboard. She controlled nearly every pitch, every at-bat and every inning of Mid Illini Bandits 14U’s 9-0 victory.

For five innings, the game belonged to her.

Madysen struck out 10, allowed only three hits and walked one while facing just 17 batters—two more than the minimum. She opened the afternoon by punching out the first two hitters she faced, then retired the third on a ground ball for a spotless first inning.

Her best work came when Livingston County finally threatened.

A leadoff double and passed ball placed a runner at third with nobody out in the second. One ball in play could have broken up the shutout.

Madysen never gave Livingston County the chance.

She struck out the next two hitters, one swinging and one looking, then walked calmly back to the dugout with the runner still standing 60 feet from home.

That inning captured the entire performance. Madysen had the power to miss bats, the command to finish hitters and the composure to sharpen her pitching whenever trouble appeared.

Livingston County managed a one-out single in the third, but Taylor D. threw out the runner attempting to steal second. Madysen ended the inning with another called third strike.

A leadoff walk in the fourth produced nothing. She answered with a strikeout before Holly S. completed a line-drive double play at first.

Then came the finish.

Livingston County opened the fifth with a single, its third hit of the game. Madysen responded by striking out three consecutive batters. Swinging. Swinging. Swinging.

No rally. No late drama. Just three final trips back to the dugout and a shutout complete.

Mid Illini’s lineup gave its pitcher plenty of support, scoring five runs in the first. Grace S. reached on an error, Taylor doubled to center and Holly drove in the opening run with a hard ground-ball single. Isabella Y. brought home another run, Madysen helped herself with an RBI hit and Natalie D. crushed a two-run homer to center for a 5-0 advantage.

Taylor added a triple and scored in the third. Natalie singled during a three-run fourth, while Abby C. and Kyleigh F. also crossed the plate as the Bandits stretched the lead to nine.

The offense supplied the runs. The defense made the necessary plays.

But Madysen owned the afternoon.

Ten strikeouts. Three hits. One walk. Five scoreless innings.

It was not simply a shutout. It was a pitching masterclass.