Olson shuts out Wartburg in Central softball sweep
Central College
WAVERLY — Pitcher Karly Olson (senior, Winterset) silenced a red-hot Wartburg College offense with a one-hit shutout as the No. 17-ranked Central College softball team opened Iowa Conference play with a road sweep Tuesday, 4-0 and 10-1 in six innings.
The wins pushed the Dutch to 20-4 overall and 2-0 in league
Olson (8-2) carried a no-hitter into the seventh inning, yielding a leadoff double and walking a batter before closing out the win. She faced just 25 hitters, walking two and striking out nine. Wartburg had scored 43 runs in its previous four games.
“Karly pitched really well,” coach George Wares said. “Wartburg’s got so much speed at the top of the lineup and their 3-4-5 (batters) are legitimate power hitters, but she handled them well and the defense made some really good plays behind her.”
The Dutch were able to scratch out three runs in the third inning off Wartburg ace Kimberly Wedeking (10-4).
“She’s pretty tough,” Wares said. “We weren’t hitting the ball very hard. To her credit, she kept us off-balance.”
Central added a tally in the fourth and finished with six hits, including two by freshman left fielder Sara Tallman (Pella). Shortstop Emily Wilson (sophomore, Bondurant, Bondurant-Farrar HS) had a hit and two walks in four plate appearances.
Central pounded out 11 hits in the nightcap against the Knights (14-10 overall, 2-2 conference), belting a season-best three home runs. Wilson, Olson and left fielder Tabitha Taylor (junior, Grimes, Dallas Center-Grimes HS) each went deep. It was Wilson’s fourth round-tripper as she had three more hits and scored twice, giving her four hits on the day and raising her average to a team-high .474. Tallman also had four hits on the day and is hitting .444 in her rookie season.
Yet Wares wanted to talk about the Dutch defense, including a much-improved showing at shortstop by Wilson, who made a couple pivotal plays.
“The defense picked it up a notch today,” Wares said. “We made some great plays in the infield and the outfield was really solid.”
Annie DeVries (junior, Eldridge, North Scott HS) relieved starter Mariah Fritz (sophomore, Tama, East Marshall HS) in the third inning and picked up the win. DeVries (6-0), allowed just two hits in four innings, although one left the park. She had no walks or strikeouts.
“Annie got us out of a big jam,” Wares said. “She didn’t miss many pitches, although she missed on one. And the defense played well behind her again.”
Wares said Central’s pitchers are making strides.
“When we get ahead (in the count) and make the pitches we want to throw, all three of them are pretty effective,” Wares said. “And Karly (Olson) was just over the top today. She was cruising.”
The Dutch are improving in other areas, too.
“We’re just a steady team,” Wares said. “We’re doing a lot of things well.
“But that said, our baserunning hasn’t been very good. Our jumps have not been very aggressive and we’re not always making good decisions. So it’s good that even as well as we’re playing, there are still many areas where we can get better.”
There are no breaks in the conference road ahead. Central stays on the road, traveling to Indianola Saturday to tackle Simpson College for a 2 p.m. league twinbill. A traditional NCAA tourney contender, Simpson is incorporating lots of new faces in the lineup following a coaching change, dropping to 5-17 overall and 0-4 in the league, marks Wares calls misleading. Nebraska Wesleyan pulled out a 2-1, 6-5 sweep of Simpson at Lincoln, Neb. Tuesday, using a six-run seventh inning for an improbable victory in the nightcap.
