Anderson rockets lift Central to softball tourney wins

TUCSON, ARIZ.—Central College’s softball fortunes changed Friday with a pair of swings from second baseman Kaitlyn Andresen (senior, Davenport, Assumption HS) in a sweep of opening games at the NFCA Division III Leadoff Classic.

Andresen belted a pair of game-changing home runs as the No. 12-rated Dutch knocked off Transylvania University (Ky.) 4-0 and No. 8 DePauw University (Ind.) 7-2 in the elite 24-team tourney.

The scores were lopsided but the games were not. Central had mustered only two Sara Tallman (senior, Pella) hits off DePauw ace Cami Henry entering the sixth inning of the nightcap and trailed 2-1 with opportunities dwindling. But with one out, Tallman lit the fuse with a bunt single, followed by a walk to second baseman Lauren Birt (sophomore, Ankeny, Centennial HS) walk. Andresen then rocked her second homer of the day to left field for a sudden 4-2 lead.

Wares had a word with Andresen before the pivotal at-bat.

“All I said was, don’t worry about the situation, just look for something to hit hard and she did,” he said.

That opened the gates for a six-run inning as first baseman Amanda Sigulas (senior, Morton, Ill.) roped an RBI double to right field and scored on a single by left fielder Emma Johnson (freshman, Davenport, Assumption HS) before racing home on a pinch-hit double by Katie Banowetz (junior, Grand Mound, Calamus-Wheatland HS).

Tallman had put Central on top in the first inning with an inside-the-park homer down the left-field line, her first career round-tripper, to start a 3-for-3 game. But DePauw swiftly answered with a pair of runs off starting pitcher Skylar Sadler (freshman, Lisbon) in the top of the second.

That’s when reliever Morgan Schaben (freshman, Harlan) came up big. After yielding a bases-loaded walk, she threw 5.2 scoreless innings, giving up only two hits while walking three and striking out two for her first collegiate victory.

“She threw really well,” Wares said. “She was nervous, and so was Skylar. But after she walked the first hitter, she settled in. She spotted her fastball well and her change-up really helped her.”

Andresen’s homer against Transylvania (4-1) was equally critical, Wares said. Her blast to left field in the first inning put the Dutch on top 1-0, a lead they nursed until finally tacking on three runs in the sixth on just one hit, three walks and some daring baserunning with five steals. Shortstop Daria Parchert (junior, Illinois City, Ill., Rockridge HS) had a single and a double as the Dutch had six hits overall.

“Scoring the first run in that game was so important,” Wares said, noting that Transylvania hadn’t surrendered a run in its first four games. “Both pitchers were going to be tough to score against.”

It was a five-hit gem for freshman Sydni Huisman (Treynor), who struck out nine and eluded some seventh-inning traffic to post her first shutout. She limited the Pioneers to just two hits and a walk through six innings. She yielded three hits in the seventh to load the bases with one out before retiring the final two hitters to close it out and improve to 2-0.

“It was just a really solid effort,” Wares said. “She got some key strikeouts, she was locating her fastball well and the rise ball was really moving for her. She got in a little trouble in the seventh. She got a little tired and she started overthrowing, but she battled through it.”

It was an emotional early season boost on a big stage for a club relying heavily on three freshman pitchers throwing to a pair of rookie catchers, Madison Farrington (Marshalltown, East Marshall HS) and Cassie Severson (Ankeny, Centennial HS), who split Friday’s duties.

“You don’t want to fall behind but to win the way we did was really beneficial,” Wares said. “You could see it on our players’ faces. Their confidence level went way up.”

But the Dutch could still get humbled in a hurry in the demanding tourney. They come back in just a few hours with a 9 a.m. (10 a.m. Central Time) contest with LeTourneau University (Texas) followed by an 11 a.m. (noon Central Time) game with Emerson College (Mass.). Central has two more games Sunday before flying back to Iowa.

It will be first-ever meetings with both schools. LeTourneau is 9-5 after tumbling Friday to the No. 14 University of St. Thomas (Minn.) and Emory University (Ga.). Emerson is 0-6 but has dropped three one-run decisions and Friday was defeated by No. 3 Linfield University (Ore.) 5-3 and Transylvania 7-3.

“It’s like we say every year on spring trips,” Wares said. “Very seldom do we have to play back-to-back doubleheaders like this once we’re into the Iowa portion of our schedule but the other team has got to do it, too.”

Audio webcasts of all of Central’s Arizona games are being provided through www.kniakrls.com and can be accessed directly at rdo.to/krls3, KNIA-KRLS sports director Trevor Castle, the voice of the Dutch, calls the action.