Central settles for second in conference softball tourney

PELLA-American Rivers champion Central College couldn’t follow up its crown with the conference tourney title as well, but bigger things lie ahead.

The No. 24-ranked Dutch (29-10) toppled Simpson College Saturday 7-2 but dropped the title game of the six-team tourney to Coe College 5-3. Coe (31-9) receives the conference’s automatic berth in the NCAA Division III Championships, but coach George Wares is confident his players will hear their name called when the 62-team tournament field is revealed at 10 a.m. Monday on NCAA.com.

Nonetheless, there was disappointment in Saturday’s finish.

“We wanted to win,” Wares said. “But other than that, we wanted to play a good game and I think that’s what we did. They just made a few more plays and they made some really good defensive plays, even though they also let us extend innings with a few bad plays. But I was happy with the way we played.”

While the Dutch were robbed of potentially big hits by Coe, they were also the beneficiaries of four errors as all three Central runs were unearned.

Emma Beck (sophomore, Holland, Grundy Center HS) absorbed the loss. Beck (14-5), the winner in the earlier game against Simpson, allowed four runs on six hits and four walks over 5.0 innings with three strikeouts. Morgan Schaben (5th-year, Portsmouth, Harlan HS) gave up a run on three hits with two strikeouts in the final two innings.

A six-run third inning was all Central needed to notch its third victory of the year over Simpson. Second baseman Haley Bach (junior, Council Bluffs, Lewis Central HS) and third baseman Franie Burnett (senior, Ankeny, Centennial HS) each had two hits and had three hits on the day. Wares likes the way the Dutch, and that duo in particular, are swinging.

“I thought even in that seventh inning (against Coe), when we were three up, three down, we had really good at-bats and I think that’s an encouraging sign,” he said.

“We’ve been having really good practices and, again, I give credit to our other pitchers, like Chloe Dougherty (junior, Alleman, North Polk HS), who have been throwing a lot. We’ve probably hit more live this year than we have other years because we’ve been able to do that.”

Beck allowed a run on three hits with two walks over 4.2 innings. Central outhit Simpson 8-6 and played errorless defense in both games.

“I thought the Simpson game was about as clean as we’ve played all year and so that was encouraging, especially playing a team that has some really good athletes and a team that was playing to get in (to the national tourney).”

Central absorbed some injuries Saturday and will get some rest before NCAA tourney play begins Thursday, assuming the Dutch advance.

“We’ll obviously rest (Sunday) and I think we’ll got real light Monday, then start preparing Tuesday and Wednesday,” Wares said.