PORTLAND – Lydia Howarth missed Kennebunk’s first three softball games this season with a knee injury, and the junior wasn’t her normal self on the mound or at the plate in the Rams shutout loss to South Portland on Monday. But Tuesday’s tilt against Portland at Kiley Field was a different story.
Howarth hit a lead-changing, two-run triple in the third inning and added a two-run, inside-the-park homer in the fourth as the Rams earned their first win of the season, 12-2, over the Bulldogs.

“We needed it,” said Kennebunk coach Eddie Pike. “The girls needed that win. We’ve been playing so hard … Tonight, it seemed like we put everything together.”

Howarth went 2-for-3 at the plate, with five RBIs and three runs scored. She also pitched the final 2 ⅔ innings, not allowing a hit and striking out three. Kennebunk starter Emily Hogue gave up two runs, one earned, on five hits and five walks over 4 ⅔ innings.

Hogue’s lone strikeout came in the first inning when the right-hander stranded the bases loaded after Portland had pushed across the game’s first run on an error.

The Rams tied the score on an RBI single by Olivia Cox in the second and tacked on nine more runs before the Bulldogs crossed home plate again, but Hogue’s performance wasn’t lost amid the offensive onslaught.

“Emily’s unflappable,” said Eddie Pike. “She comes to play. It’s great to watch.”

Kennebunk took advantage of eight Portland errors, many of which they forced with an aggressive attack on the basepaths. Three different Rams stole at least two bases. Cox finished with three RBIs, and Maddison Pike and Isabella Real both knocked in a run. Howarth, Real and Christine Jarowicz led Kennebunk with two hits each.

Portland starter Jill Joyce, who allowed nine earned runs on nine hits in 4 ⅓, led the Bulldogs with two hits. Grace Stacey had Portland’s only RBI.

As Howarth returned to the Rams first-base dugout after her home run, she stopped by her mom, smiled and said that hit was redemption for her 0-for-3, two-strikeout game against South Portland.

“She changes the dynamic of our lineup offensively and defensively,” said Eddie Pike. “She’s so solid with everything she does. We really appreciate having her back. Her smile, the way she loves the game, she’s great.”