Heading into Independence weekend, Clinton Recreation and Parks held week three of its 2026 Summer Coed Adult Softball League games, with two of the league’s undefeated teams going at it.
Last Thursday, Bat and Boujee (2-0) faced off against NGNL (3-0) at Royal Lane Park Field Two. Bat and Boujee came into the game following a 28-11 win over Thrown Together (0-3) on June 22, while NGNL was fresh off its third consecutive win, defeating Diamond Dynasty (1-1) 17-11.
Both teams were among the highest in the league in runs scored heading into this matchup, with Bat and Boujee averaging 26 runs in their two games played, while NGNL averaged 21.3 runs scored per game in their three wins.
So it was only natural that the scores would come in early. In the first inning, it would be Bat and Boujee who would jump out to a five-run lead, thanks to a couple of walks that set up Payton Hope to bring in multiple runs with a homer to make the score 3-0. Following up the home run, Bat and Boujee’s Ty McLean would hit a double RBI (runs batted in) to extend the lead to 5-0 before the inning was over.
But NGNL would not be down for long. Following two runs from Bat and Boujee, an RBI by Maddison Wood got NGNL on the board in the second inning to help spark some offense. After a runner made it on base, Tyler Williams joined the RBI party, bringing in two runs to help cut the opposing lead to just four. That RBI double by Williams brought in two additional teammates before Eric Stoddard launched a hit into the outfield to give his team an 8-6 lead before the inning closed.
Going into the third, Hope hit his second home run of the game to give Bat and Boujee the lead back at 9-8. This culminated in a 7-0 run for B&B, highlighted by an inside-the-park home run by McLean, following a few errors of throws to home plate by NGNL to make the game 11-8 at the time. Following two more runs, a double hit by Russell Hope and a single by Eli Culbreth, respectively, set up Dustin Sessoms to complete a double RBI to push the Bad and Boujee lead to 15-8. Taylor Hope also made it home to double her team’s lead to 16-8 before their side retired.
The offense didn’t drop off for NGNL. James McDowell smacked a ball over the fence to bring in a runner along with himself to make the score 16-10. Thanks to a single hit by Wood and two doubles by both Williams and Kyle Molivas, Stoddard brought two runners home with an RBI double, cutting the Bat and Boujee lead to four at 16-12. A ground out by Dani Harrison stopped the run at the end of the third inning.
Heading into the fourth, Bat and Boujee made sure to mount an insurmountable lead. A single hit from Allison Coleman started the run, becoming the first to reach base. Sending Coleman to third was McLean, who ripped a single into the outfield. This set up a triple hit by Russell that brought both Coleman and McLean home to make the score 18-12. Culberth hit a double bringing Russell home to extend the lead to 20-12.
The 4-0 fourth-inning run set up Payton once more to hit his third home run of the game, bringing in three runs plus himself to make the score 24-12. Following another run, Kaylee Hope, Coleman, and McLean all touched home base to end the top of the inning with a 27-12 lead for Bat and Boujee.
NGNL would not go down without swinging, though. When it was their at-bat, both Mark Stanford and Dustin Edge would hit singles to get two runners on base, before Edge made it home to start the scoring in the bottom of the fourth inning. McDowell smacked a double to make sure Stanford would reach home plate as well, and the score was 27-14. Andrew Johnston kept the run going, hitting a two-run homer of his own to cut the lead to 11 at 27-16. Following two more runs from NGNL, the score ultimately ended at 27-18.
The win for Bat and Boujee put them in the league lead as the last undefeated team at 3-0, while NGNL dropped to second with a 3-1 record.
Following the game, despite the loss, NGNL’s player-coach Kelly Wood was overall happy with how the season’s gone so far for the team.
“It’s been fun,” she said. “There’s a few bits of people that we played with last year, and we’ve picked up a few new players, but I think all in all we’ve had fun. Getting out here for the love of the game is great. This has been something that we’ve probably all grown up doing, so having everyone come together to work together, it’s definitely fun.”
Following this matchup in Week 4, NGNL will play two games, the first against Thrown Together on Monday, July 6, and the second against Diamond Dynasty (1-1) on Thursday, July 9 at 6:30 p.m. at Royal Lane Park Field Two. Bat and Boujee will face off against Diamond Dynasty on Monday, July 6, and then Thrown Together on Thursday, July 9 at 7:30 p.m. at Royal Lane Park Field Two.