By Patrick MacCoonRecord Sports EditorWhile a first-place finish wasn’t an option in the Troy Lead-Off Classic for the Warrenton softball team, Trevor Hibbs was pleased with his team’s end result in the prolonged tournament.Due to rainouts, the Warriors made up their last two contests Saturday and finished on a high note with 2-0 and 6-0 wins over Bowling Green and Francis Howell Central, respectively.Warrenton finished 3-1 in the 16-team tournament. Its only loss came to Timberland on Aug. 21 in a 4-3 loss plagued by two fielding miscues.“I was really pleased with how we finished in a very strong tournament,” Hibbs said. “We were down a starter for the final two games, but I felt like our defense rebounded nicely and we had timely hitting and strong pitching come through for us this weekend. They really stepped up.”Pitching was a strong suit throughout for the Warriors (6-1) the past two weekends of play in a tournament considered to be one of the toughest in the entire state.Taylor Nordwald, Jenny Jansen and Kaylee Anderson combined to only allow two earned runs in the tournament. They struck out 23 batters in 26 innings and only allowed 15 hits.Jansen recorded 13 strikeouts in just 11 1/2 innings and has made her presence felt on the mound, a position somewhat new to her.“Jenny hasn’t pitched really before this season for us at all, but she is doing really well,” Hibbs said. “We needed her to pitch. She puts a lot of spin on the ball and is really powerful. People are going to have to watch out for her.”Nordwald beat Bowling Green and Fort Zumwalt South and didn’t allow an earned run in three appearances.Against the Bobcats on Saturday morning, the senior pitcher was at her sharpest. Nordwald only allowed three hits against a well-respected lineup and struck out six.“Taylor was really on versus Bowling Green,” Hibbs said. “They are one of the best teams we will face all season and she was at her best and had a really nice spin on the ball. She held them down. When she is hitting her spots and our defense is working, she is hard to beat.”Jansen along with sophomores Destinee Frost and Kelsey Huenfeld had strong offensive performances in the tournament.The trio combined to go 16-for-39 (.410), drove in nine runs, scored 11 times and stole four bases. Despite only two hits against Bowling Green, Frost drove in a pair of runs in the first inning, which proved to be the difference.“Kelsey is swinging a hot bat and Destinee and Jenny help out our offense a lot too,” Hibbs said. “Those three girls are constant producers for us. Frost really helped us win a tough pitching duel against Bowling Green.”Abby Meyers connected on Warrenton’s first home run of the season and drove in two runs in the tournament finale against Francis Howell Central.Overall, the tournament provided the Warriors with some tough tests to start a season they believe is filled with a great deal of promise.“It’s good to play some of the strongest competition around early in the season,” Hibbs said. “Having played in this tournament is going to help us. It’s a great tournament and while the weather got into it a little bit, we were happy to finish it the way we did.”

The Warriors softball team finished in fourth place at the Troy Lead-Off Classic last weekend. Warrenton is off to a strong start this season on the diamond.