BY CLIFF SMELLEY
Lake Butler Middle School got two RBI each from Kaillynn Gulbrand and Bryleigh Prevatt in an 11-0 softball win over Lafayette on March 20.
It was the third straight win for the Tigers (10-2), who travel to play Keystone Heights on Monday, March 31, at 6 p.m. before hosting Bradford on Tuesday, April 1, at 6 p.m.
Jessa Dekle and Lea Elixson each drove in a run in the win over Lafayette, while Makayla Orton batted 2 for 3.
Brylee Brown earned the win, giving up two hits and striking out seven in four innings.
Ashlyn Ferris threw the final inning, allowing no hits and striking out three.
After a 1-1 start to the season, Lake Butler won six in a row, beginning with an 18-3 defeat of Williston in three innings on Feb. 17.
Kennedy Arnold, who went 2 for 3, had four RBI — all occurring in a 12-run third inning. She hit an RBI single before later getting a second at-bat in which she hit a bases-clearing double with the bases loaded.
Dekle and Chloe Tomlinson each had three RBI, while Orton, who was 2 for 3, had two.
Brown, Elixson and Gulbrand each drove in one run.
Ferris pitched all three innings, giving up two hits and striking out six.
Lake Butler hosted Williston on Feb. 20, winning 13-2.
Orton and Jennifer Traver each hit a two-run double as part of a nine-run first inning.
Orton, who went 2 for 3, and Traver each finished with three RBI.
Brown, Elixson and Camber McKinley each had one RBI.
Ferris pitched two innings, allowing no runs and one hit, while striking out four.
Brown gave up two runs (one earned) and four hits in three innings. She had six strikeouts.
On Feb. 27, the Tigers defeated visiting Keystone Heights 15-8.
Arnold, who went 3 for 4 with two RBI, hit an RBI double as part of a three-run second that put Lake Butler up 7-2. She later hit an RBI single in a two-run third that gave the Tigers a seven-run lead.
Tomlinson and Dekle went 2 for 2 and 2 for 4, respectively. Each drove in two runs.
Brown, Prevatt and Raelynn Alvarez each had one RBI.
Only one of Keystone’s runs was earned off pitcher Ferris, who allowed six hits and struck out seven in a complete-game effort.
Lake Butler trailed 6-3 against host Palatka before scoring 11 runs in the top of the seventh and eventually winning 14-10 on March 3.
Dekle hit a two-run triple as part of the big inning, which also included a two-run single by Tomlinson and run-scoring singles by Alvarez, Arnold, Brown, Elixson and Gulbrand.
Dekle and Elixson each went 3 for 5 with two RBI, while Brown and Tomlinson each went 2 for 4 with two RBI.
Prevatt went 2 for 3, while Alvarez and Orton each batted 2 for 4 with one RBI.
Arnold and Gulbrand each had one RBI.
On March 6, the Tigers got a three-run homer from Gulbrand in a 15-3 win over host Lafayette.
The homer was part of a seven-run third inning that also included RBI singles from Dekle, Ferris and Orton.
Gulbrand, who also hit an RBI double in a six-run first, went 2 for 3 with four RBI, while Orton was 2 for 3 with three RBI.
Brown, Dekle, Ferris, Tomlinson and Traver each had one RBI, with Ferris batting 2 for 2.
In the circle, Brown gave up one earned run and two hits, while striking out seven.
Lake Butler defeated host Bradford 15-4 on March 10.
A six-run fifth inning that put the Tigers up 9-0 included an RBI double by Arnold and an RBI single by Orton.
The Tigers scored six runs in the seventh, with the first two coming off a home run by Elixson. The inning also included an RBI triple by Brown and an RBI double by Dekle.
Brown, Dekle and Elixson each finished with two RBI, with Dekle going 4 for 5 and Elixson going 2 for 2.
Arnold, Ferris and Orton each had one RBI.
Brown pitched a complete game, allowing six hits and striking out two.
A 16-3 loss to Lake City on March 11 put an end to the win streak, but the Tigers bounced back with a 17-7 win over Palatka on March 14.
Gulbrand went 4 for 5 with a double and six RBI, while Arnold was 3 for 5 with a double, a solo home run and three RBI.
Ferris, who went 2 for 4, and Serenity Hankerson each had a double and two RBI.
Orton went 2 for 4 with two doubles and one RBI, while Brown and Dekle batted 3 for 4 and 3 for 5, respectively.
Brown pitched a complete game, allowing three earned runs and nine hits, while striking out.
On March 18, Lake Butler defeated Suwanee 6-4.
It was tied at 4-4 before Gulbrand was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded in the fourth.
The Tigers added another run in the fifth on a ground out by Arnold.
Ferris, who went 2 for 3, and Orton each had two RBI, with Orton hitting a double.
Arnold and Gulbrand finished with one RBI each.
