Manhattan High softball split a marathon Centennial League doubleheader Tuesday at Washburn Rural, winning the opener 3-2 in 12 innings before falling 12-7 in the nightcap.
The Indians moved to 12-12 on the season after battling through nearly 20 combined innings against the Lady Blues.
In the opener, Manhattan leaned on sophomore pitcher Josi Alesana and a late clutch swing from Josey Ball to grind out a 12-inning victory.
After both teams traded runs early, the game remained tied at 2-2 until the top of the 12th inning when Josey Ball launched a solo home run to center field, giving the Indians the lead for good.
Manhattan struck first in the opening inning on a two-RBI single from Solveig Chase before Washburn Rural answered with runs in the fourth and fifth innings.
Alesana tossed all 12 innings in the circle, allowing two runs on 10 hits while striking out five with seven walks.
The Indians collected nine hits offensively, led by Gracyn Neitzel’s 3-for-6 performance. Chase added two hits and two RBI, while Kat Ball also finished with two hits.
The momentum carried early into Game 2 as Manhattan jumped out to a 5-0 lead through two innings.
Alesana opened the scoring with an RBI double in the first before the Indians exploded in the second behind Josey Ball’s RBI single and a three-run home run from Neitzel.
But Washburn Rural answered immediately with a six-run bottom of the second inning, highlighted by a grand slam from Zoie Duran that flipped the game.
Manhattan briefly tied things again at 6-6 in the third on an RBI single by Chase, but the Lady Blues responded with three runs in the bottom half and never gave the lead back.
Neitzel finished the nightcap 2-for-4 with four RBI, while Alesana and Tierra Young each added two hits. The Indians totaled nine hits in the loss.
Washburn Rural closed out the game with three more runs in the sixth inning to secure the split.
Manhattan wraps up the regular season on Thursday, hosting Hays on senior night at CiCo Park.