Kaili Henning may be only an eighth grader, but on Friday night, the youngster came through like a seasoned veteran for the St. Edmond softball team.

Henning delivered a walk-off single in the bottom of the eighth inning to lead the Gaels (3-4 overall, 2-2 North Central Conference) to their third straight victory, as they edged Hampton-Dumont, 6-5.

“Kaili is a younger player, but has a lot of expierence. She’s played a lot of softball games in travel ball,” said SEHS head coach Bill Shirbroun. “She is a good person to have in that situation. She sees the ball well and puts into play.

“Gracie Harvey got into scoring position by running the bases well and reading two passed balls.”

Harvey led off the inning with a walk and advanced to third. With a 2-2 count, Henning ripped a single to right centerfield to give the Gaels the victory.

Henning had a strong night at the plate, going 3-for-3 with an RBI and a run scored.

The Bulldogs battled back in the contest, scoring two runs in their half of the seventh to knot the score at 5-5, but strong defensive plays by SEHS ended the threat with runners in scoring position.

“They had some big hits late,” Shirbroun said. “They still had some runners on after tying the game, but (catcher) Kacey Kruthoff made a big play to get an out.”

St. Edmond stole nine bases, led by Harvey’s three swipes.

“We left a lot of runners on, but still forced the issue,” Shirbroun said. “I personally ran us out of an inning, but we were being aggressive.”

Jocy Timmerman and Harvey had two hits each for the Gaels. Anna Kolacia drove in a run. Ella Vratny had a double.

Vratny improved to 3-5 on the season, striking out five and walking none.

The Gaels are back in action on Monday when they travel to face Webster City in a North Central Conference contest. Junior varsity action begins at 5:30 p.m. Varsity first pitch is slated for approximately 7:30 p.m.

ST. EDMOND 6, HAMPTON-DUMONT/CAL 5

Hampton-Dumont 000 102 20 — 5 8 1

St. Edmond 201 011 01 — 6 11 3

WP–Ella Vratny (3-4), (8IP, 8H, 5SO, 0BB); 2B–SE: Ella Vratny.