Marian hosted Millard South last night in a battle of top 10 teams. The Crusaders grabbed an early lead and went on to win 6-1. Marian got the bats going early with Maddia Groff’s (2023) double and home runs by Charity Curtis (2024) and Payton Kincaid (2023) in the first inning. Groff hit another home run in the 4th inning. Overall the Crusaders had 11 hits, six of them for extra bases.
Groff went the distance in the circle for Marian. She pitched 7 innings and struck out 10 while only walking one. The Southern Illinois commit looked like one of the top pitchers in the state. The left-hander was able to battle out of trouble on a couple of different occasions. In the first inning, the Patriots got a lead-off single by Bailey Owen (2025), followed by an Amari Laing (2023) sacrifice bunt and an intentional walk to Bree Urban (2024). Groff struck out Catelyn Rodenbiker (2023) before Addy Parsons (2024) drove in a run with a single to right field. Marian right fielder Emma Humpal (2023) threw Urban out at the plate to end the inning.
At the plate, Groff was 3-for-4 with 2 RBI a home run, and a double.
Other Notable Performances:
Rylinn Groff (2023, Marian) – The senior catcher was 2-for-4 with a double and scored a run. She’s committed to Southern Illinois with her sister.
Payton Kincaid (2023, Marian) – Kincaid was 2-for-4 with a pair of runs scored and an RBI. She had a home run in the first inning and led off the third with a double.
Addy Parsons (2024, Millard South) – Parsons was the only Patriot with multiple hits in the game. The junior was 2-for-3 with a double and an RBI.
Andrea McGargill (2023, Millard South) – McGargill pitched 2.1 innings in relief of Bri True giving up no runs and only 2 hits while striking out 2.
