On Wednesday, April 20, at 3:45 p.m., the Horizon Honors’ softball team began one of its last games of the season. Florence High School was up to bat. The crowd was excited to see what was to happen, and the girls themselves were raring to go. It was Softball Seniors’ Grad Night, meaning seniors Kaela Knight, Vivian Fretwell, McKenna Gutt, Amanda Lopez, Sierra Reese, and Bree Lientz had their photos on the dugout. A win would be a great way to finish off the day. However, that unfortunately wouldn’t be happening that evening.

The top of the first inning was a slow one. The first batter got out, and the next made it to first base. The inning proceeded with one run for Florence with a pop fly and another out. Horizon Honors switched to batting, Fretwell started them off by making it to first. The next batter, Knight, made it to first, with Fretwell on second The next three girls all got out, leading to the start of the second inning. Sophomore Addie Martin was a pitcher, and she was out on first, resulting in some light applause from the crowd. The next batter was up, but junior Cali Lientz missed the ball and she made it to third. Cali Lientz caught the ball and got her out, and the girl on third wasn’t fast enough to score a run. When Horizon Honors was back up to the plate, the first three batters were out.

After Horizon Honors’ softball team warmed up, Florence High School’s girls cheered on their first batter, who made it to first. The next girl was out via a caught pop fly, and as the next girl bat, the girl who was on second base stole third. When the next batter hit to outfield, they dropped the ball, leaving a girl on second base and earning two more runs for Florence. Then, the next two girls ended up on bases, and when Horizon Honors’ shortstop dropped the ball, a Florence player stole second base. That same girl made it to home base the next hit. The next player was out on first. By the end of the top of the third inning, the score was 0-4, with Florence ahead by a considerable distance.

As Cali Lientz stepped up to the plate, there were some cheers from the audience. However, the first baseman caught the ball. Gutt, however, had an easy trip to first base because the ball hit her. Knight was sent back to the dugout on a pop fly, and as Gutt tried to steal second when Reese was batting, she was out.

The fourth inning was when Horizon Honors officially lost any chance of winning. The pitches kept coming, but they weren’t making their mark, to the point where girls were allowed to walk to first place. Florence was being worked around the bases, on and on, with no outs. Balls were dropped by outfielders and basemen alike, giving Florence an easy victory. The score was 0-12 when Martin, our pitcher, was switched out for Knight. She got out the next girl on first. By the time the third out was completed, the score was 0-14. Horizon Honors made no runs in the bottom of the fourth, sending the game along to the fifth inning.

During the top of the fifth inning, the second batter hit a homerun. The next girl made it to second, then as the next girl hit, stole third. Another player struck out, which stirred some hope in the girls.The final score at the end of the fifth inning is 0-17. The bottom of the fifth was brief – the first three batters were out again.

The game is ended according to the 10-run rule. Despite the girls being tired, there’s a special, brief ceremony for the Horizon Honors’ senior girls. With heads low, the game was stopped. The two teams high-fived, and the girls left the field.

As for the celebration for the senior girls, they each got a special recognition and a loud whoop from their family members, concluding the game against a very honorable opponent.