By TYLER HENRY
Lead Sportswriter - Salina Post
The Minneapolis Lady Lions steamrolled their way through the first two rounds of their home regional, knocking off Plainville 15-0 in four innings and Smoky Valley 13-3 in five innings to advance to the regional championship on Wednesday.
3A Regional Quarterfinal: Minneapolis 15, Plainville 0
Chaos reigned supreme early in this game as the first six Lady Lions were all hit by a pitch.
Minneapolis scored 11 runs in the bottom of the first on the strength of just one hit and never looked back, adding another in the second, three more in the third, and one more in the fifth to punch their ticket to the semifinals.
At the plate, Kaegan Hardesty reached base in all four plate appearances, including an infield single in the third and the game-winning RBI single in the fifth.
In the circle, Hardesty and Braedee Weatherman shut down the Lady Cardinal order, combining to toss a shortened perfect game, striking out seven without allowing a single baserunner.
Weatherman’s second strikeout put her in rare air as the senior collected her 100th punchout of the season.
This win advanced the Lady Lions to 19-4 while Plainville’s season came to a close at 1-22.
3A Regional Semifinal: Minneapolis 13, Smoky Valley 3
In the semifinals, the Lady Lions picked up right where they left off, plating two runs in the first, three in the second, two in the third and fourth, and four in the fifth to eliminate Smoky Valley and advance to the championship round.
Every single member of the Minneapolis lineup would score at least one run in this game, with Sierra Cosaart leading the charge with a double, two singles, and four RBI.
This time, it was Weatherman who took to the circle for the start, earning her tenth win while allowing just three runs on five hits, striking out ten in the process.
Minneapolis will host league rival Beloit in the regional final at 6:00 on Wednesday. The Lady Trojans walked off Nickerson 7-6 to escape an upset before decimating Lyons 15-0 in the semis.