By Justin Jarrett
LowcoSports.com
When Beaufort High’s softball team takes the field Thursday for a non-region road test at James Island, it will have been almost two weeks since the Eagles have allowed a hit, and Kylie Rast hasn’t been the only one involved in the dominance.
Rast did her thing again Wednesday in a 10-0 win over John Paul II, racking up 16 strikeouts in a six-inning no-hitter while allowing one walk and hitting one batter. The North Greenville signee now has 180 strikeouts across 83 innings this season.
A day earlier, the Eagles blanked North Charleston, 15-0, in three innings with Adalyn Johnson tossing a perfect game and striking out eight of the nine Cougars who went to the plate.
The Eagles have endured some growing pains on defense with young players adapting to new roles, but Rast’s skill at drawing swings and misses helps to mitigate the damage. Beaufort will need to limit its mistakes on defense when the region title is on the line next week against Hanahan and throughout the Class 3A playoffs.
Rast will also need the backing of the offense, which took advantage of 15 free passes (10 walks, five hit by pitches) against North Charleston but banged out nine hits against JPII. Rast was 2-for-2 with a double, a walk, two runs, and two RBIs, while Arianna Smith and Saylor Waldorf each added two hits.
The Eagles (10-4) were scheduled to face Oceanside Collegiate on Friday, but that matchup was scrapped when the Landsharks needed the date to make up a region game. Beaufort gets one more tuneup Thursday at James Island before hosting Hanahan on April 23 to open a home-and-home series that will crown the region champion.
Justin Jarrett is the sports editor of The Island News and the founder of LowcoSports.com. He was the sports editor of the Island Packet and the Beaufort Gazette for 6½ years. He has a passion for sports and community journalism and a questionable sense of humor.
