Central misses chance for softball sweep
PELLA — Central College’s Iowa Conference softball doubleheader with Wartburg College was shortened because of darkness Sunday, but not shortened quite enough for the Dutch.
As daylight dwindled on the A.N. Kuyper Athletics Complex field, umpires elected to squeeze in one more inning in the rain-delayed Iowa Conference twinbill and Wartburg capitalized with a 3-run Mara Forsyth home run in the final frame of a 5-4 six-inning victory after Central prevailed 7-2 in the opener.
That dropped the Dutch (22-14 overall, 8-6 conference) into fourth place in the league standings heading into the six-team, single-elimination conference tournament Friday and Saturday at champion Luther College in Decorah. Central will meet Coe Friday at 2 p.m. The winner meets top-seeded Luther Saturday at 11 a.m., with the championship game to follow.
Sunday Central had forged ahead 4-2 as a one-out double by catcher Emily Walton (sophomore, Cedar Rapids, Jefferson HS) sparked a two-run fourth inning, thanks to some aggressive baserunning that include a theft of home by pinch-runner Kendra Sexton (freshman, Danbury, Maple Valley-Anthon Oto HS).
But in the sixth, Dutch pitcher Karly Olson (junior, Winterset), who threw 168 pitches on the day, went 2-0 on the leadoff hitter. Coach George Wares elected to go with reliever Annie DeVries (sophomore, Eldridge, North Scott HS), who had picked up the win in relief in game one. DeVries promptly struck out Katie Sommer, but the pitch eluded the catcher and Sommer reached base. An infield hit after a diving stop by second baseman Paige Dickel (sophomore, New Virginia, Norwalk HS) put two aboard. After Forsyth ran the count to 2-0, Wares brought back Olson, only to see Forsyth belt the next pitch over the right-field fence.
“Annie (DeVries) made a great pitch on the strikeout and Paige Dickel almost made a great play on the hit,” Wares said. “We made the decision to bring back Karly (Olson) and that turned out to not work. But like most of the time on hits like that, it wasn’t the home run that beat us, it was what preceded it.”
Olson (15-14) absorbed the loss, giving up three runs on nine hits with four walks and three strikeouts.
First baseman Abby Voas (junior, Chanhassen, Minn.) had given Central an early lead with a two-run homer, her second, in the second inning. Third basmeman Lauren Bagby (freshman, Norwalk) had two hits but Central was outhit 10-6.
The Dutch running game was in high gear in a seven-run third inning in the opener, which comprised all of Central’s scoring. Voas and center fielder Sadie Baugher (freshman, Eddyville, Eddyville-Blakesburg HS) started the uprising with back-to-back doubles. Voas also had an RBI single in the inning, as did Bagby and designated player Kylie Olson (freshman, Mapleton, Minn., Maple River HS).
“We had some players have good days,” Wares said. “When Abby Voas gets hits, she tends to get on a roll and we obviously hope that continues. Tabitha Taylor (sophomore, Grimes, Dallas Center-Grimes HS) is still swinging it well, Lauren Bagby has been very consistent and Sadie Baugher had a good day.
“It’s not like we had a bad day at the plate. But when we have a chance to get another run with two outs, we don’t, and when we need to get a shutdown inning, we don’t get it. That’s what a good team is able to do, but we’ve not been able to do that consistently.”
Wares liked his club’s aggressiveness on the basepaths. Right fielder Sarah Bowen (junior, New Sharon, North Mahaska HS) had a pair of stolen bases in the opener.
“I thought Paige Dickel made some very good decisions on the bases,” he said.
Central had six of its seven hits in the third inning. Bagby and Voas each had two.
Olson allowed one run on three hits in 3.0 innings, walking two and fanning four. DeVries (4-0) went 2.2 innings, yielding a run on three hits with no walks and a strikeout. Trisha Smith (senior, New Hampton), in her final collegiate home appearance, gave up two hits in 1.1 innings of scoreless relief.
This week’s league tourney offers an opportunity for the kind of success that has proven elusive for the young Dutch this year. Three wins are needed for the tournament title and a resulting NCAA Division III tournament berth.
“It’s doable,” Wares said. “It’s just a question of whether we can be consistent for three games. If we can, we’ve got a shot.”