CAMP VERDE —Aislynn Mulcaire made the most of senior day, pitching a complete game shutout against No. 7-ranked Phoenix Christian in a 5-0 win for Camp Verde on a sunny Monday afternoon.

It is the 11th straight win for the No. 8-ranked Cowboys (17-5, 6-0 2A Central), which came into Monday’s matchup knowing full well if their goal to win a championship was going to be realized, a team like the Cougars was one of many tests along the way.

“Our mentality was to stay strong and stay out of our heads,” Mulcaire said about where her team was at mentally entering the biggest game of the season. “We knew this team [Phoenix Christian] was going to be our hardest one for sure in our region, and we had to win this game to help in our standings, and if we don’t, we’re going to [suffer] in the rankings.”

Mulcaire allowed only one hit, two walks and struck out 12 against one of the better offenses in 2A softball, including Hannah Fisher, who was 0 for 3 with a walk in the loss for Phoenix Christian.

Fisher, a senior, came into Monday hitting .642 this season with 13 doubles, six triples, and has 33 RBIs, good enough for seventh overall in state.

“She pitched a great game. Of course, we didn’t help, we weren’t jumping at the opportunities that we had, but you know, sometimes you have those games,” Phoenix Christian coach Erik Flisyn said. “We didn’t get an opportunity to execute and they got the win, they deserved it.”

Mulcaire is now 13-4 with a 1.90 ERA and has 122 strikeouts on the season. She said it was important that she controlled her emotions once entering the circle on senior day, and she felt that was accomplished.

“It was great, especially when you have a good game against a good team like [Phoenix Christian],” Mulcaire said.

Offensively, Camp Verde collected eight total hits, scoring runs in the second and third innings while scratching across a run in the sixth to seal the deal.

Madison Weber was 2 for 3 with two RBIs, her first an RBI single to make it 4-0 in the bottom of the third. In the sixth, she dropped one in front of the Cougars’ left fielder to score Jeslyn Sharp making it 5-0.

Sharp was 1 for 3 with an RBI, while Brayden Sapp, Kinlee Oothoudt, Clancy Murdock and Haygen Armstrong each had a hit.

For Phoenix Christian (17-7, 6-1 2A Central), Karly Van Metre threw six innings, allowing eight hits and three walks for three earned runs while striking out seven.

Elizabeth Fisher had the lone hit for the Cougars in the loss.

UP NEXT

These two clubs face each other once again Friday, April 17, in Phoenix. First pitch is set for 3:45 p.m.

Brian M. Bergner Jr. has covered professional, collegiate and high school sports for more than 20 years. Follow him on X at @AzPreps365Brian or on Facebook at @Five2MediaWorks. Have a story idea? Email Brian at bbergner@azpreps365.com.