Split foils Central softball tourney bid
PELLA—One more win.
The what-ifs and if-onlys are plentiful as the Central College softball team looks back on its season but in the end a wind-blown 8-0 five-inning loss to Coe College that followed a 7-0 victory Sunday left the Dutch one win short of an American Rivers tournament berth. The University of Dubuque and Buena Vista University at 10-6 emerged as co-champions of a fiercely contested league race in which the top eight teams were separated by just three games. Central, 7-9, shared seventh place with Loras College—a team that was ranked in the NCAA Division III top 25 midway through the year–missing the six-team conference tourney for the first time since it was reinstated in 2006.
“I told the players afterwards that I’m never going to fault their effort, but it wasn’t just today (that kept Central out of the tournament),” coach George Wares said. “There were a whole lot of games that you just think back on and we could have been in a different situation right now. I feel really bad for the seniors. But we just didn’t win enough games.”
Yet Central, 21-17 overall, nearly clawed its win into the tournament. Pitcher Morgan Schaben (junior, Portsmouth, Harlan HS) sparkled in the opener, shutting out Coe (21-11 overall) on just two hits over six innings before Emma Neu (junior, Prospect Park, N.J., Hackensack HS) retired the Kohawks in order in the seventh. Schaben walked two and struck out three.
“Morgan threw a really good first game,” Wares said.
First baseman Megan Stuhr (junior, Sigourney) had three of Central’s six hits and knocked in a pair of runs. Meanwhile, Coe surprisingly gift-wrapped the win with nine errors.
“That’s uncharacteristic for them,” Wares said. “But give our players credit. Sometimes the pressure that we’re placing with aggressive baserunning and getting the ball in play produces mistakes.”
The Dutch tried to ride Schaben (13-11) for a few more innings in game two but Coe struck for two first-inning runs.
“Give (Coe) credit,” Wares said. “They made an adjustment or two.”
Sydni Huisman (junior, Treynor) entered in the second inning but with no more success, giving up six runs on four hits with four walks over three innings before Neu tossed the final frame. Meanwhile the Dutch were limited to just three hits.
It was Huisman’s injury that could have derailed the Central season before it even launched. Moments before the season opener March 4 in Columbus, Georgia, she sustained what appeared to be a season-ending injury. She gamely returned to action later in the season but in less than optimum condition and will require a full off-season of rehab before the next campaign. The team’s season record was also reflective of the competition. Heading into the past week, Central had the third-most difficult schedule in Division III.
“I’m not a big fan of public excuses,” Wares said. “There was no point in the season where (the players) gave up. It’s hard to fault their effort or their stick-to-itiveness. And they improved. They gave a lot of fight, we just didn’t have quite enough ammunition, so to speak, to win some of those fights we needed to. And that’s, again, a tribute to our league as well. You have to have everything going and play well when you need to play well to be successful in this conference.”
The result was Sunday’s action put the wraps on Central careers for five seniors. Designated player Lauren Birt (Ankeny, Centennial HS), who also saw action at second base, hit .344 with a .408 on-base percentage, 25 runs scored and 17 stolen bases.
“Obviously from day one, with her baserunning and slapping ability, she’s contributed,” Wares said. “She’s also a really good second baseman. She’s invested a lot in our program and given a lot during the four years that she’s played here.”
Kellie Prince (Grinnell) was Wares’ top option as a pinch-runner this year, appearing in 25 games and scoring 14 runs while the other Dutch seniors got precious few opportunities on the field. Pitcher Sabrina Tallman (Pella) threw just two innings this year while pitcher Emma Snyder (Carroll) didn’t see action and Meredith Mahoney (Downers Grove, Ill., Downers Grove South HS), who was on the varsity as a catcher as a freshman. was sidelined by injury and served as a student manager this spring. Wares said their efforts are in some ways the team’s most impressive, because they don’t get the accolades or the game action.
“People like them go so unnoticed,” Wares said. “There wasn’t a great path for them to get a lot of playing time and yet, here they are. And the other thing that people don’t see is that having some depth like they bring helps us so much in practice. There are some days that they just threw to the varsity and really got nothing for it other than thank yous from the varsity but that’s really valuable. They’re unique.”
As always, the sting of the season’s end lingers.
“We’re just disappointed that it’s over,” Wares said. “We were 21-17 but the hurt is the same as it would be if we were 30-8 because we don’t get to play with this group anymore.”
Yet there is much to look forward to in the storied Dutch program. But it will take significant off-season and preseason work.
“Obviously when you’ve got a lot coming back and you feel pretty good about the class that’s coming in, you’re optimistic,” Wares said. “But I hope the motivation is an individual thing. Everyone has to find ways to make themselves a little bit better. You can’t say, well, we are going to get better. I think that has to be everybody individually. For me, as the head coach, to every player, we each have to say, ‘I’ve got to get better.’ If we all do that, collectively, next year could be a pretty special year.”
