FARMINGTON -- Farmington leadoff hitter Shayley Treat is red hot with her bat and it didn't take long for Pea Ridge to find that out -- the hard way.
Treat homered on the first pitch of the game forcing Pea Ridge to play catch up from the start of a Monday, April 19 home game for the Lady Blackhawks. Playing from behind is not a good strategy against Farmington these days, and Pea Ridge never came close to catching up suffering a 10-1 loss as Farmington (18-2, 6-0) sealed the No. 1 seed for the District 4A-1 softball tournament this week.
Blakelee Winn had two hits and scored Pea Ridge's only run of the game on Alevia Reyna RBI single. Nalea Holliday also had two hits for the Lady Blackhawks while Aidan Dayberry pitched a complete game allowing 10 runs on 11 hits and striking out two with no walks.
Treat now has three home runs in her last three games since chocking a grand slam in the fourth inning and adding a 2-run dinger in the sixth inning of an 8-2 win over Harrison that postured the Lady Cardinals in the driver's seat for a conference title in coach Randy Osnes' final season.
Treat's feeling incentive to produce for her team and her coaching staff keenly aware that her senior season represents the end of an era for Farmington softball with Osnes' resignation already accepted once the season ends.
Against Harrison, Treat started 0-for-2 and finally decided not to swing at the first strike because the coaches were telling the Lady Cardinals not to.
"I just had a feeling and I don't know. I saw it in and it was perfect," Treat said of her grand slam. "I didn't know if it was out or not, got a little worried for a second but I was excited and then it went over, awesome."
That grand slam put Harrison in a 6-0 hole the Lady Goblins could not climb out of and put a lot of pressure on the Lady Goblins because Farmington got four runs instantaneously breaking open a 2-0 game.
"I definitely like the outcome obviously because we won. I'm glad I got to help out my team like that because before then, being leadoff, I was not doing my job the best way I should have, and so I'm glad I made up for that," Treat said.
She was also making up for an error in throwing to second base trying to make a double play.
Treat's second home run against Harrison was simply spectacular arcing high above the trees with sophomore Kamryn Uher on base and the Lady Cardinals increasing their five run advantage to a 8-1.
Treat could hardly contain her excitement as she ran the bases. Initial thoughts of "Oh crap, I swung at a rise ball," knowing she wasn't supposed to on the first pitch turned into "I hope that goes out because it's really high and probably a fly ball" into whoops and hollers as Uher raised her finger pointing to the sky as the sophomore rounded third in front of Treat and headed for home.
The feat stands out as Treat's first multi-home run game of a standout career at Farmington that includes playing in two State Finals in 2018 against Greenbrier in Class 5A at Benton as freshman and taking on Pottsville in the Class 4A Finals as a sophomore in 2019.
"It went out so it was awesome. I've never done that before in my life," Treat said. "I've only had one home run since my freshman and sophomore year and I get two home runs for the season so it's pretty awesome, I'm excited."
Treat is thankful to get to put a chapter or two into the books on Coach Osnes' final season, delighted she had a big part in the key conference wins against Harrison, Pea Ridge and Prairie Grove to wind up 7-0 in league play.
"It feels awesome, I'm so happy. I'm so happy I'm a part of this team and everything that he stands for," Treat said.
From Treat's perspective Osnes stands for hard work and for discipline. In four years including the 2020 season that got canceled due to covid after Farmington jumped out to a 3-0 start, Treat realizes that even though Osnes might display an intensity or discipline the team and raise his voice, he really wants what's best for each player and desires for the Lady Cardinals to know the feeling of winning.
"He has his expectations and he wants us to be the very best that we can be and I think that's always good for a coach to have because he's just pushing me more and more and more," Treat said. "He's been doing this for 25 years and he's only lost very few conference championships and we did not want to be the first ones in his very last year."
Lady Cardinal long balls wrecked Pea Ridge's chances. Besides Treat's leadoff solo shot, classmate Grace Boatright went yard in the third inning and Isabella Hulsey parked one in the seventh inning.
Against Prairie Grove on Thursday, Treat showed no signs of cooling off. She went 4-for-4 singling in the first, second, fourth, and fifth. She drove in a run in the second increasing Farmington's lead to 4-1.