HERON LAKE — The Russell-Tyler-Ruthton softball team rattled off 15 hits, powered by Payton Johansen’s perfect 4-for-4 day at the plate, to lead the Knights to a 15-3 mercy-rule win over Heron Lake-Okabena/Fulda Thursday night in five innings. The win marked the fifth-straight for RTR.

Johansen ran in two runners along with accounting for a pair of runs herself along with her team-high four hits.

Laken Baartman also had a big offensive performance again, going 2 for 4 at the plate with a triple, two RBIs and shared a team-high three runs with Kynsi VanderPlaats. VanderPlaats also had three hits on the night in her four plate appearances.

Baartman, Jaida Fricke and Grace DeVries all had a double in the win as well.

RTR scored in every inning, sparked by four runs in the first, and kept chipping away until scoring another five in the top of the fifth to put the game in run-rule territory.

To get the momentum started right away, Paisley Thooft scored the first run in the first inning off a Baartman RBI double. Both Baartman and DeVries then ran home with the help of a Daryssa Cruz two-run RBI single on a line drive to center field, as VanderPlaats ran in the final run of the opening inning on a Johansen single line drive to center field.

In the five-run fifth inning, the Knights got bases loaded between a pair of walks and a VanderPlaats single. Joee Thooft scored first on another Johansen RBI single, as VanderPlaats followed close behind with a Taylin Thooft sacrifice grond-out.

Bailey Weedman and Johansen then scored on Morgan Appel’s line-drive single to left field, as Appel scored the final run of the night on a passed ball.

Fricke pitched a complete game, and finished with seven strikeouts while allowing one walk, one earned run and five hits.

The Knights outhit HLOF 15-3 overall.

RTR (8-6) will look to keep its momentum going when it hosts Edgerton/Southwest Minnesota Christian for a doubleheader on Friday with a 4:30 p.m. start.

BATTING

P. Thooft: 1-4, R, RBI, BB; J. Fricke: 1-3, R, RBI, 2BB; L. Baartman: 2-4, 3R, 2RBI; G. DeVries: 1-2, R, 2RBI, 2BB; K. VanderPlaats: 3-4, 3R; D. Cruz: 2-2, R, 2RBI, 2BB; P. Johansen: 4-4, 2R, 2RBI; T. Thooft: 0-3, RBI, BB; M. Appel: 1-3, R, 2RBI, BB.

PITCHING

J. Fricke: 5 IP, 7 SO, 5H, 3R, ER, BB.