Lampasas pitcher Taylor Holloman and teammate Jennifer Herron, front, try to keep their spirits up as New Braunfels Canyon scored nine runs during the second inning of its series-clinching Game 2 victory Friday. PHOTOS BY RICHARD AKRIDGE There is no shame in losing to a better team.

Unfortunately, the Lady Badgers found out the hard way.

After reaching the regional quarterfinals on the back of a potent offensive attack and shutdown pitching, Lampasas was beat at its own game by New Braunfels Canyon. The Cougarettes outscored the Lady Badgers 27-4 over two games to eliminate them from the postseason Friday evening.

The top-10 squads opened the series Thursday night at Westlake High School in Austin, where the Cougarettes made an immediate impact.

In the top of the first inning, defending Class 4A champion Canyon displayed the extremely effective hitting that would lead to the Lady Badgers’ downfall. After an RBI double from catcher Mandy Ogle, the No. 2 Cougarettes jumped out to a 3-0 lead when shortstop Stephanie Peace delivered a two-run homer to left field.

Above: Junior Madison Morris takes a swing during Game 2, but Lampasas struggled to produce runs against the Cougarettes’ solid pitching. Below: Kady Crow delivers a pitch after being inserted into Game 1 in the third inning. The sophomore held New Braunfels Canyon to just one run in the 8-1 loss Thursday. Lampasas, ranked No. 10 by the Texas Girls Coaches Association, responded in the second inning. Madison Morris collected the team’s first hit, a double, before sophomore Kady Crow sent Morris home on the following at bat, trimming the lead to 3-1.

The Lady Badgers did not get any closer.

Canyon limited Lampasas to just one hit over the duration of the game and added four more runs to the scoreboard before Lampasas head coach Chris Munoz decided to pull starting pitcher Taylor Holloman from the game and insert Crow.

The move proved beneficial, as Crow gave up just one run during her five innings of work. But Lampasas could not generate any offense, and the Cougarettes won 8-1.

While the pitching change kept Canyon in check, it also allowed the Cougarettes’ coaching staff an opportunity to scout both of Lampasas’ pitchers.

When Crow took the mound in Game 2 on Friday evening, Canyon was ready.

With a runner on first, Peace sent another pitch out of the park to put Canyon up 2-0.

The Cougarettes tacked on another run in the second inning when Crow walked a batter with the bases loaded, causing Munoz once again to make a pitching change and send Holloman into the game.

This time, however, it had little effect.

The Cougarettes went on to score nine runs in the inning and take an 11-0 lead into the third.

With their backs against the wall, the Lady Badgers produced their best inning of the series, as Hadley Brown scored the team’s first run on a sacrifice fly to right field that sent Holloman home.

Marisa Bogart followed in the lineup and hit a two-RBI single that brought the score to 11-3.

Hoping to limit Canyon’s explosiveness, Munoz made another pitching change, as he brought Crow back into the contest.

But there was no stopping the Cougarettes, who posted eight runs over the next two innings to win an abbreviated five-inning game 19- 3.

The two-game sweep was a stark contrast to Lampasas’ play during the regular season. The Lady Badgers gave up a total of 14 runs over the course of 10 district games while scoring 114.

Despite the disappointing finish to their season, the Lady Badgers have plenty of reasons to be excited about the future.

Lampasas’ entire roster is eligible to return with eight players set to become seniors. Along with all the returning faces, the Lady Badgers hope to benefit from the move to Class 3A, where they will attempt to win their third consecutive district title.