Huge Central softball rally sparks sweep
Central College
TUCSON, ARIZ.—This time the Central College softball team responded.
Saturday the Dutch failed to come back after surrendering an early lead in a disappointing 3-2 loss to Suffolk (Mass.) in the season opener. But Sunday, after Central saw an early 5-2 lead transformed into a sudden 11-5 deficit the Dutch staged a dramatic rally for a memorable 13-12 triumph over Stevens Institute of Technology (N.J.). Central followed that with a 5-3 victory over Division II Minn.-Crookston to improve to 3-1.
The first three innings of the wild opener took more than 90 minutes, as pitchers on both squads struggled with a consistent but hitter-friendly strike zone. After being given a 2-0 lead, Stevens starter Marissa Cappello yielded three walks and a single before being lifted as Central erupted for five runs in the first inning. But Stevens (2-1) came back with two more runs in the second and exploded for seven in the third inning, knocking out Dutch starter Karly Olson (senior, Winterset). Olson was charged with six runs on six hits with three walks after not allowing any free passes in a sparkling effort Saturday but the remainder of the third-inning tallies were charged to reliever Annie DeVries (junior, Eldridge, North Scott HS) leaving the Dutch down 11-5 heading to the bottom of the third.
“We were really discouraged,” coach George Wares said. “We had just had such a good outing from Annie yesterday and in the third inning she just wasn’t very good.”
But Wares said after Saturday’s letdown, the Dutch discussed the kind of response that was needed.
“Everything we talked about came forward,” Wares said. “The players picked (the coaching staff) up, quite frankly. They just kept battling, kept chipping away.”
Central picked up two runs in the third and five in the fourth to take a surprising 12-11 lead, adding a run in the fifth.
Meanwhile, DeVries found her groove, recording the game’s first 1-2-3 inning in the fourth and pitching scoreless fifth and sixth innings as well. She yielded a two-out homer in the seventh but hung on for the win.
“Annie really settled down,” Wares said. “That’s an encouraging sign. She should feel pretty good about that.”
DeVries (2-0) was charged with six runs on 10 hits with one walk. Olson stayed in the game as the designated player and had three hits while second baseman Paige Dickel (junior, Norwalk), first baseman Abbie Voas (senior, Chanhassen, Minn.) and shortstop Emily Wilson (sophomore, Bondurant, Bondurant-Farrar HS) each had two of Central’s 13 hits. The Dutch also drew eight walks including three for leadoff hitter Sara Tallman (freshman, Pella).
The opener was a day’s work in itself but Minn.-Crookston was waiting, the lone Division II team on the Central schedule and Wares saw it as a good opportunity for sophomore transfer Mariah Fritz (sophomore, Tama, East Marshall HS).
Central broke on top with a first-inning run as, in what is likely to be a recurring theme, Tallman beat out an infield hit, stole second, moved to third on a hit by third baseman Amanda Sigulas (freshman, Morton, Ill.) and scored when Sigulas drew the defense into a rundown.
Minn.-Crookston tied the game in the second, but Central moved ahead with a run in the fourth and three more in the fifth. Fritz meanwhile blanked the Golden Eagles (4-8) through the fifth before allowing the first two hitters to reach in the sixth. Wares again turned to DeVries, who wriggled free from that jam, but gave up a two-run pinch-hit homer in the seventh before nailing down her first save of the season.
“Mariah was really throwing well and I didn’t want her to end on a down note after they got a couple runners on,” Wares said.
Fritz allowed just three hits and an unearned run over five innings with two walks and three strikeouts.
“I thought her velocity was good, her location was solid and she had really good movement,” Wares said. “That was really encouraging. If she continues throwing like that and maybe shows a little more improvement, she’ll be very competitive in the Iowa Conference.”
Left fielder Tabitha Taylor (junior, Grimes, Dallas Center-Grimes HS) had three more hits in addition to her steady defense, raising her two-day average to .727 while Dickel, Sigulas and Tallman each had two hits. Dickel, known for her glove, had four hits in the two games Sunday and is hitting .667.
“Paige has spent a lot of time working on her hitting and I know coach (Alicica) O’Brien has spent a lot of time with her,” Wares said. “She’s a very smart player who has really matured. She stays within herself and there’s no reason to believe this is not going to continue.”
Game times remain the same Monday as Central takes on Dickinson (Pa.) at 11 a.m. (Central Time) and Eastern Connecticut State at 1 p.m. Dickinson took a 1-2 record into a Sunday evening contest with Wis.-Platteville after a 15-24 2016 campaign. Eastern Connecticut State, a national power in the 1980s and 1990s, staged some memorable battles with Central in those years. The Warriors dropped their first two games of the season Sunday, but after some down years, coach Diana Pepin has restored the program to NCAA contender status with five trips to the national tourney since 2008. Pepin was a three-year starter at Eastern before graduating in 1992.
“She obviously played on those teams against Central, so this will be a big game,” Wares said.
A live audio webcast of Monday’s second game will be available through www.kniakrls.com. The 1 p.m. start time is approximate, depending on the length of preceding games.
