Last Friday night, the Meadville Eagles and Lady Eagles traveled to Galt to play a pair of games of softball with Grundy County.  The boys remained undefeated on the young season with a 16-15 win, and the Lady Eagles made it a sweep with a 12-4 big win.
Boy’s Game - Meadville 16  Grundy County 15
The Eagles came to bat first in this contest and started things off with a bang.  Willie Howe started things off with a hit and would come around to score.  Also reaching base this inning was Tanner Baker.  Unfortunately, Grundy County came out hotter, as they plated four runs in nine at-bats to take a 4-1 lead after one inning.
The Eagles managed only one hit, from the bat of Caleb Dennis, in the second inning, but no runs.  Grundy County added another pair of runs to their tally, to make the score 6-1 after two innings.
The third inning saw the Eagles rally start to take shape.  Cody Smith started the offense with a one out hit.  Rick Tate backed this up with a hit of his own.  Jacob Malone made it three in a row for the Eagles.  All three of these batters came around to score in this inning to close the gap somewhat.  The Eagles came into the field in the bottom of the inning down only 6-4.  Grundy County put one lone run on the board in their half of the third, but clearly, the momentum had shifted.  After three innings, Meadville was down 7-4.
The Eagles plated three more runs themselves in the fourth inning to continue to gather their momentum.  Dale Yarbrough, Howe, and Smith all scored in the inning, with Tate also reaching base.  Grundy County was held scoreless in the fourth inning to swing even more momentum underneath the wings of the Eagles.  After four innings, the game was all tied up at 7-7.
The Eagles may have been a bit overeager in the fifth inning, as they managed no runs or hits.  Grundy County squeaked across a run to retake the lead.  After five innings, Meadville was down by one, 8-7.
In the sixth inning, the scoreboard operator must have gotten tired, because both squads exploded offensively, and drove the score through the roof.  The Eagles scored five big runs in the top of the sixth to take a lead.  Howe, Baker, Smith, Tate, and Jacob Malone all hit and scored to lift the Eagles over the hump and retake the momentum in this contest.  Grundy County put three runs on the board to close the gap to a single run in the home half of the sixth.  After it was all said and done, the scoreboard was lit up with double-digit runs on both sides.  Meadville was finally on top though, 12-11.
The top of the seventh saw the Eagles score another pair of runs on two hits.  Baker and Smith scored, while Tate and Malone each got on base as well.  Grundy County managed to add three runs to their total, re-tying the game.  After seven innings, the game was tied again, this time 14-14.
The eighth and final inning was one for the ages.  Meadville came out and put two runs across the plate on a pair of hits.  Dennis and Cole Seifert both hit and scored to put the Meadville boys on top.  Grundy County managed one run in the bottom of the eighth, but it wasn’t enough as the Eagles flew high in this come from behind win, 16-15.
Girl’s Game - Meadville 12  Grundy County 4
In the girl’s game, the Lady Eagles didn’t let things get nearly so close.  They managed to triple the offensive output of Grundy County in this 12-4 win on the road.
The first inning saw a pair of base runners for the Lady Eagles but only one run.  Fallon Howe reached base and scored, while Kayla Smith reached base.  Grundy County scored three runs on three hits to take an early two-run lead.  After one inning, Meadville was down 3-1.  But, these three runs by Grundy County would be their last for a good portion of the game.
Both teams made little to no noise in the second inning, leaving things the same as they were after the opening frame.  In the third inning though, the Lady Eagles soared into the batter’s box, and put some runs on the board.  Kaylen Holcer and Fallon Howe both earned hits and scored.  These two runs tied the game up at 3-3.  Grundy County went down quietly to leave the game still tied after three innings.
The fourth inning proved to be a quiet one with neither team scoring.  In the fifth inning, Meadville scored a run with Kaylen Holcer crossing the plate to put the Lady Eagles on top.  Grundy County’s bats still fell silent.  After five innings, Meadville was on top to stay, 4-3.
The Lady Eagles bats blew up in the sixth inning, putting the team’s run total into double figures.  Palmer, Kaylen Holcer, Fallon Howe, Ashley Cowan, Kendra Holcer, and Kellie Sargent all scored to give Meadville an even bigger lead.  Again, Grundy County heard no answers from their silent bats.  After six innings, Meadville was up big, 10-3.
The seventh and final inning saw the Lady Eagles tack on another pair of runs with Cowan, and Dillan Howe both scoring.  Grundy County scored one run in the home half of the seventh, but it was much too late.  In the end, the Lady Eagles won 12-4.