Mac's Logan Smith fires a pitch during Tuesday's contest with Eisenhower. Smith went the distance on the mound and also had some big hits in the Highlanders' 12-2 win.
MacArthur softball coach Jared Lowmiller calls Logan Smith the Highlanders' best player, and she showed exactly why on Tuesday.
The junior showed some brilliance on offense and defense, leading Mac to a 12-2 win over city rival Eisenhower in five innings at the Highlander diamond. The victory brought the Highlanders' record to 3-5 on the season and 2-0 in district play.
Smith threw a complete game on the mound, allowing only five hits and striking out four batters. She also went 3-for-4 at the plate, tallying a triple, a double and a single with two RBIs while scoring three runs.
"Centerfield, shortstop or pitching -- wherever we throw her out there, she's going to battle," Lowmiller said. "She hasn't had a ton of experience on the mound, so she's going to make some mistakes, but we know we're going to get effort from her. She's also a high-quality hitter -- three hits in a game for her is nothing.
"She'll be happy with 3-for-4, but she's still going to be disappointed she didn't square up on that one soft bloop she had and make it a line drive to the fence -- that's the kind of attitude she has."
Despite her success, Smith had to overcome a slow start.
Three of the five hits she allowed came in the first inning, including a triple and a double from the first two Eagle batters that gave Eisenhower a quick 1-0 lead. After that, however, it was all Mac.
Smith flew out on her first at-bat, but after the Highlanders recorded three-straight singles to start the second, she came through with a triple to score Lauryn Taylor and Zoe Talamantez, giving her team a lead it wouldn't relinquish. Kennedy Fisher brought Smith home shortly after to extend the advantage to 3-1. It was the first of two five-hit innings for Mac.
Smith would strike again in the fourth, putting herself in scoring position with a double to deep leftfield, and Anaiya Goodner scored her two batters later with a single.
Smith and Goodner teamed up again in the fifth after Smith singled, allowing Goodner send her across home plate with a double to bring the score to 9-2.
"I feel like since it was a rivalry game, I was really ready to come out and win," Smith said. "Everyone had higher energy today.
"When you get up there in the stance and you get aggressive, it intimidates the pitcher. They weren't hitting their spot, so I was just jumping on it when I saw it."
Defensively, Smith gave up only two additional hits, one of which came by a fielding error, after the first inning, giving the Highlanders the confidence they needed to break the game open.
Smith warmed up longer than usual before the game, which she theorized played a key role in her success on the mound.
"I did that just for this game because I didn't want it to be close," Smith said. "I wanted to beat them really bad."
Smith's pitching success gave Mac's go-to pitcher Kaegan Christian and her arm some much needed rest, allowing Christian to focus all of her efforts on batting.
Christian led the team at the plate, going 4-for-4 with a pair of doubles and singles to along with an RBI and a run.
The freshman said she relished the opportunity to produce more on offense.
"It was really fun, especially being a freshman," Christian said. "This is what I love to do. Their pitcher wasn't really hitting her spots in the middle and inside, which are my favorite pitches."
Lowmiller said Christian has been struggling on the mound recently, so it was nice to see her gain some confidence at-bat.
"Kaegan's been our second-best hitter all year behind Logan," Lowmiller said. "She's been hitting every game, and that's a testament to her not taking defense or the pitching to the plate with her. She leaves it out there and does her job, and that shows she has a pretty good mental makeup."
The Highlanders finished with 19 hits, six of which came in the final inning.
Although the Eagles (1-4) fell, Eisenhower coach Terry Brierton said his team is young and has to find ways to improve as the season moves forward.
"We start five freshmen, so we have a really young team," Brierton said. "But winners find ways to win and losers find ways to lose, and we gotta figure out how to win and be competitive. The ball fell just right for them, and (Mac) got a couple of nice calls -- not to say they weren't good calls -- but they fell their way. We just have to get better; it's about that simple."
Both teams return to action on Thursday with the Highlanders playing Ardmore at home, and the Eagles hosting Sante Fe South. Both games are set for 5 p.m.