The Homer Mariners continued their dominance of the Northern Lights Conference with a 12-0 shutout over Soldotna in four innings Wednesday in Homer.
After getting the season off to a rough start with 13 straight losses, the Mariners have notched two wins in a row by a combined score of 29-0, after topping Kenai Central 17-0 on Monday. Wednesday’s win improved Homer’s conference record to 2-1, while Soldotna dropped to 2-2 in both conference and overall standings.
On Wednesday, Homer’s bats were working hard, as the Mariners outhit SoHi 12-2. McKi Needham got the win on the mound, pitching all four innings with only the two hits given up, no walks, and two strikeouts.
Serena Prior went the distance for Soldotna, giving up 12 hits and eight earned runs, but striking out five.
The biggest difference between the two pitchers was the time spent out on the diamond. Needham delivered 37 pitches in the game, while Prior threw 101 times.
At bat, Maggie LaRue provided much of the power, hitting 2 for 2 with three runs scored. Larsen Fellows, Pam Jantzi, Lauren Kuhns and Kyla Pitzman all hit 2 for 3. Fellows batted in three runs and Kuhn added 2 RBI.
Amber McDonald had both Soldotna hits.
The scoring started in the first inning when LaRue scored on a passed ball, but it wouldn’t be until the bottom of the third that Homer would get going again. LaRue stole home for her second of the day, and Riley Walls scored on a grounder from Fellows.
Homer ended up with four runs in the third inning and seven in the fourth, prompting the mercy rule to be put into effect.
Homer is off until Tuesday, when they meet up with Skyview for the second time this year. Skyview beat Homer last week for the Mariners’ lone conference loss of the year.
