Central extends softball win streak to seven
Central College
TUCSON, ARIZ.—The Central College softball cruised to the midpoint of its 16-game spring break trip with a pair of one-sided victories Tuesday, 7-1 over Greenville College (Ill.) and 8-0 in five innings over MacMurray College (Ill.).
The Dutch take a 7-1 mark into an off day Wednesday, before closing the trip with eight games in four days starting Thursday.
Pitcher Karly Olson (senior, Winterset) tossed a four-hit shutout against Greenville. Olson (2-1), pitching for the fourth straight day, had 10 strikeouts and no walks.
“Obviously the brightest spot of the game was the efficiency of Karly and her ability to command the strike zone,” coach George Wares said.
Senior Felicia Schulty (Wellman, Mid-Prairie HS), getting her second straight start as the designated player, was 3-for-3 with two runs scored. Shortstop Emily Wilson (sophomore, Bondurant, Bondurant-Farrar HS) had two hits, including a run-scoring triple and two RBI. Central stole five bases, including two by freshman center fielder Sara Tallman (Pella).
The Dutch built a 3-0 lead in the third inning and stretched it to 7-0 in the fifth but failed to bring home the decisive eighth run that would have settled the matter before going the full seven innings.
Wilson had two more hits against MacMurray (0-3) as did left fielder Tabitha Taylor (junior, Grimes, Dallas Center-Grimes HS). Wilson and freshman third baseman/catcher Amanda Sigulas (Morton, Ill.) each belted their fifth double of the young season and Taylor cracked her fourth. Central used a four-run third inning to build a 7-0 lead, then added single tallies in the fourth and fifth. Pitcher Annie DeVries (junior, Eldridge, North Scott HS) yielded a run in the third inning but closed the deal in the fifth to improve to 3-0. She scattered five hits in five innings, striking out six and walking none.
Wares praised her performance as well.
“Efficiency was a big point of emphasis in the off-season and for Karly (Olson) and Annie to go 12 innings with no walks is a big step in the right direction.”
Wares continues to like what he’s seeing from his club.
“I’m a little more convinced this team has some of the intangibles you look for,” he said. “Being able to really, really focus on execution, particularly in the second game on the fourth day when you’re getting a little tired.”
Central added 10 more stolen bases in the two games and holds a 28-4 advantage in steals over opponents through eight games. Tallman leads with seven and second baseman Paige Dickel (junior, Norwalk) has five.
“I think we have some really good options on the bases,” Wares said, “although we did get thrown out three times today. But there are some things we can still do to improve, like get better reads and finish our slides better.
“It’s not just stolen bases, though, it’s our running game in general, getting the extra bases and understanding situations. We’re executing that really well. Baserunning has been a point of emphasis for us, it always has been and always will be.”
Taylor tops the team batting charts with a .667 average, followed by Dickel at .500 and Wilson at .444. The Dutch are hitting .403 overall.
“I don’t know that we’re a great hitting team but we’ve got a pretty solid lineup and when you combine that with good speed, you’re going to have the opportunity to score a lot of runs,” Wares said.
Meanwhile, Central pitchers have compiled a 2.66 earned run average. Ten of the 19 earned runs allowed thus far were surrendered in a 13-12 slugfest win over Stevens Institute of Technology (N.J.). The Dutch are using a three-person staff with Olson, DeVries and sophomore transfer Mariah Fritz (Tama, East Marshall HS).
“We’ve got pretty good depth,” Wares said. “We’ve got three pitchers who can contribute in different ways.”
Central returns to action Thursday, meeting Augsburg College (Minn.) at 11 a.m. (Pacific Daylight Time) and Robert Morris-Chicago (Ill.) at 1:30 p.m. Wares expects to see most of the week’s strongest opponents over the last four days.
Augsburg is off to an 8-2 start, scoring a 9-0, 5-inning victory over Suffolk (Mass.), which defeated Central in its opener Saturday, 3-2. The Auggies, 20-20 last spring, were off Tuesday and play twice Wednesday and again Thursday morning before meeting Central. Robert Morris-Chicago, an NAIA school, is 1-5 and was also off Tuesday. The Eagles, who have not yet faced a Division III opponent, have two games Wednesday.
“You can’t get too caught up in scores yet,” Wares said. “When you play this many games on a trip, some teams may not be at their best when you play them and you never know who’s throwing what pitcher.
“We know Augsburg is solid,” said Wares, who views the Auggies as a strong club in a formidable league, the Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference. “Robert Morris is an NAIA school, so we don’t know a lot about them. But we know the level will step up with the teams we play the last three days.”
The Dutch elected to give third baseman Lauren Bagby (sophomore, Norwalk) another day of rest Tuesday as she returns from injury, but she should see her first action of the season Thursday, allowing Sigulas to get some time at catcher, increasing Central’s depth behind the plate.
“If this was the regional final today, (Bagby) could have played,” Wares said. “We’ll have some good options when she comes back. I think she will make us a notch better offensively.”
And while Karly Olson will remain the designated player, when Olson is pitching, Wares said he’ll likely keep Schulty in the DP slot after a strong audition the past two days.
A live audio webcast of Thursday’s Augsburg game will be available through www.kniakrls.com on KNIA3 and can be accessed directly at rdo.to/knia3 starting at 11 a.m. (Central Time).
