Ava Miller timed her swing perfectly on a 3-2 count in the bottom of the first inning against Doniphan on Thursday night at Notre Dame Softballfest when she smashed a fastball in the zone for an RBI double. One batter later, Jacie Smith was faced with a 3-2 count herself before scorching a sharp liner into right field for another RBI.

It was a routine night for the Notre Dame Lady Bulldogs as those two runs, along with two more and another terrific outing from senior pitcher Taylor Kutz, was enough to escape with a 4-2 win over Doniphan to cap off day one of Softballfest. The victory came after Notre Dame cruised past Poplar Bluff, 8-1, in the first game of the event.

“This game is all about pitching and we got really good pitching today,” second-year head coach Ray Reinagel said. “Then we played some defense and didn’t make too many mistakes. All in all, great start.”

With the sport being so hard to predict, a single high school softball season hinges on the performance of so many different contributors. However, for a team like Notre Dame, forecasting who might blossom and how the season will pan out should not be a challenging task.

And if you’re Reinagel, choosing an early-season team MVP front runner may be the most difficult decision to make.

“Up and down, we have no superstar,” Reinagel said. “But we sure have some quality players who know how to play the game and move the ball when we have to.”

Along with Kutz’s golden arm (1.23 ERA, 26 strikeouts in six starts), Notre Dame’s six players currently hitting .389 or better reflects their strong 5-2 start to the season.

Let’s begin with leadoff hitter Kynna Johnson – a two-way standout who currently shares a team-high .500 batting average and has only yielded four earned runs through five appearances on the mound this year.

Also hitting .500 are breakout stars Miller and Eloiza Marquez – a pair of sophomores who went a combined 7-for-11 on the day.

Then there’s the three-and-four-hole hitters in Lauren Estes and Smith. Estes, a 2023 Semoball Award finalist, is coming off a stellar freshman year where she led the Bulldogs in home runs (6) and RBIs (32). A five-tool player, Smith was everything as advertised in 2023, posting career and team highs in batting average (.396), hits (38), and stolen bases (5).

The mix-and-match lineup is potent, which is one of the main reasons why the Lady Bulldogs – who have claimed four of the last five District 1 titles – can make a serious run in the Class 4 state tournament come October.

“It’s what happened last year,” Reinagel said. “We got hot and didn’t make many mistakes. That combination of good pitching and hitting can take you far down the stretch.

“As well as we did last year, we had four freshmen starting and now they’re sophomores, so they’re still young and still learning. But they got a lot more experience in them and are just developing.”

For Notre Dame, there should be plenty more big moments and opportunities over the next few months. Despite two early losses against Chaffee and Cor Jesu Academy, Thursday brought two of the most encouraging performances of the young season.

After all, nothing bonds a team like winning game after game — and winning the way this team knows how to.

“It is a culture,” Reinagel said. “We win and our program here is successful, and they expect to come out here and do that. My best quote is, ‘good teams hope to win, great teams expect to win.’ That’s what we try to do every game.”

The Lady Bulldogs will resume action at Softballfest tomorrow night against Saxony Lutheran at 8 pm at Notre Dame High School.

DAY 1 NOTRE DAME SOFTBALLFEST RESULTS

Game 1: Notre Dame 8, Poplar Bluff 1

Game 2: Kelly 11, Poplar Bluff 4

Game 3: Doniphan 12, Kelly 1

Game 4: Notre Dame 4, Doniphan 2