Win one for the seniors.

That was the goal Thursday afternoon for Hannah Koppelmann’s Owensville Dutchgirl Softball team at OHS Field as they welcomed St. Clair’s Lady Bulldogs for a Four Rivers Conference (FRC) showdown.

Batting with the bases loaded in the bottom of the first inning of a scoreless game, junior center fielder Bailee Dare got a 3-0 pitch to her liking and shot it over the left center-field fence for a grand slam home run.

That sparked a six-run bottom of the first inning which helped Owensville go on to a 17-4 mercy-rule victory in five innings over the visiting Lady Bulldogs.

After Dare’s first inning slam, senior Kate Blankenship was hit by a pitch before a Cailin Floyd single moved her to second base.

Fellow senior Anya Binkhoelter delivered a two-out, two-RBI single capping Owensville’s six-run bottom of the first inning.

Dutchgirl freshman pitcher Hannah Keeney struck out the Lady Bulldogs in order in the top of the second inning allowing her Dutchgirl offense a chance to add to their lead.

Keeney was hit by a pitch before scoring along with Dare on a 2-RBI single from Blankenship.

Scoring when Floyd reached on an error, Blankenship gave Owensville a 7-0 lead through two innings.

St. Clair scored four runs in the top of the third inning on four hits before Keeney picked up two more strikeouts in the frame.

OHS got two of those runs back when senior Emma Daniels reached on an error and scored on a Keeney RBI double.

Keeney then scored on a RBI ground out by Dutchgirl senior outfielder Izzy Pratt giving an 11-4 lead after three innings.

Keeney once again struck out the side in the top of the fourth giving her 11 strikeouts for the game.

Helping her own cause, Keeney delivered a two-RBI triple scoring Lainey Moss and Daniels highlighting a six-run bottom of the fourth inning for the orange and black.

Now with a 17-4 lead through four innings, the Dutchgirls were three outs away from their second FRC win in a three-day span.

Owensville also defeated St. James by an identical 17-4 final score last Tuesday on the road.

Retiring the Lady Bulldogs in order in the top of the fifth inning, Keeney finished off her complete-game victory allowing four runs on four hits with no walks in addition to 13 strikeouts.

Floyd, Blankenship and Keeney each led the Dutchgirls with two hits while Dare’s aforementioned grand slam home run helped her deliver a team-high four runs batted in.

Keeney and Blankenship each also drove in three runs.

Going for the sweep, Owensville JV Dutchgirls hit the field against St. Clair’s JV Lady Bulldogs.

Floyd pitched around a leadoff walk in the top of the first inning giving her Dutchgirl offense a chance to take an early lead.

Cylee Reed walked and scored on a wild pitch giving Owensville a quick 1-0 lead.

Ari Robson also walked and scored on a passed ball before Savannah Knight walked and scored on a Danika Hinson RBI single making it 3-0 JV Dutchgirls.

OHS capped the bottom of the first inning when Lainey Moss walked allowing Rylee Dare and Hinson to score on a throwing error making it 5-0.

Doubling their run total in the bottom of the second inning, Owensville went on to take the junior varsity contest 10-0 in three innings after Floyd worked around a two-out walk in the top of the third.

During Owensville’s 17-4 FRC road victory at St. James last Tuesday, Floyd recorded a team-high three hits to go along with two RBIs and a pair of walks.

Daniels, Hinson, Moss and Blankenship each posted a pair of hits against the Lady Tigers.

Blankenship also drove in a team-high five RBIs in a game which Owensville trailed 3-1 after four innings.

Putting up five runs in the fifth and sixth innings to go along with a six-run frame in the top of the seventh inning, Koppelmann’s Dutchgirls got their bats going after a quiet four innings in Phelps County.

After a road game tomorrow (Thursday) in Jefferson City, OHS will have home games next week against Cuba, South Callaway and Montgomery County.