SPRINGFIELD — Both sides got the matchup they wanted Thursday, as former Nixa player Jaden LaBarge pitched against the Lady Eagles during prime time of their Class 4 District 10 semifinal contest.
Things finished with LaBarge helping Kickapoo to an 8-4 victory over Nixa by earning a save and driving in two runs with a pair of hits.
"Yes and no," LaBarge said when asked if she wanted to pitch against her former teammates. "You don't really want to face your friends. But I was kind of like, 'Show them what I got.' It was nerve-wracking and fun at the same time."
"I was ready for it," Nixa catcher Emma Vincent said of batting against her former batterymate. "It was kind of like what I'd been waiting for all year. It was weird not to be catching her and hitting against her instead. But I was ready to battle."
Nixa battled 'til the final out, scoring three seventh-inning runs and having the potential tying run in the on-deck circle as the game ended.
"Things could have got real interesting," coach Matt Walker said. "We competed until the end. We didn't just give up. But it was too big of a hole to dig ourselves out of. It would have helped if we could have got a few runs early."
The Lady Eagles managed only four hits — singles by Maya Herman, Dakota Hale and Phoebe Gardner and a home run by Vincent. They were hitless with runners in scoring position while stranding nine baserunners.
"We were waiting for the big hit, a line dive in the gap to drive people home," Vincent said. "If you have that one big hit, everyone gets fired up."
Herman made a bid to put Nixa up 2-0 in the first, but her shallow fly ball was snagged on a diving catch by Kickapoo's center fielder.
"She made a great play," Walker said. "I could see the ball wiggle around, but it stayed in her glove."
LaBarge helped Kickapoo to its lead by smacking an RBI double in the first and doing the same in the fifth.
"Lately, I haven't doing my best," said LaBarge, who transferred from Nixa to Kickapoo over the summer. "Tonight I forgot all about it and trusted what I have. I always trust myself in two-strike situations."
"It was kind of bittersweet," first baseman Emily Morton said of seeing LaBarge shine. "I started playing with her in junior high and now we see her and she's so much better."
With Kickapoo leading 3-1 in the fifth, the Lady Chiefs replaced starting pitcher Ellie Facklam for LaBarge. LaBarge closed things out by striking out four, walking two and hitting two batters over 2.1 innings.
LaBarge abandoned her changeup and went almost exclusively with her fast ball.
"I could tell her pitches from her body language since I'd caught her so much," Vincent said. "I know what her body looks like when she throws her changeup and I told my teammates that. I think she got that vibe. She (threw) just fast balls."
Kickapoo coach Jason Howser stuck with LaBarge while she worked to regain her control in the seventh.
"It showed me he really trusts me and he feels I have what it takes," LaBarge said. "I've bonded with him because he believes and supports me."
Nixa pitcher Maddy Meirerer struck out three, walked four and gave up eight hits.
"It was a great experience for her," Walker said of his freshman ace. "She's going to do nothing but get better."
The contest was the Nixa finale for Morton and fellow senior Ellie Osborne. Morton batted .400 with 25 RBIs and Osborne hit .338.
Morton thrived in particular as a two-strike hitter.
"I tend to do that. I don't know why," she said. "I have to wait for my pitch. I used to swing just to hit the ball. Now I wait to see the perfect one. When I see one I know I can hit, I go for it. I'm really proud of my season. Getting better over time was nice and I played my best with the team I love."
