William Penn Topples Bobcats in Heart Double Dip
Oskaloosa–The Statesmen softball team collected a pair of much-needed victories Monday as it swept Peru State in a Heart of America Athletic Conference doubleheader.
WPU (15-15, 8-8 Heart) won by scores of 8-0 (5 innings) and 6-1.
The hosts notched three quick runs in the opener, with back-to-back-to-back RBI singles from Brianna Talamantes (Fr., San Pedro, Calif., Business Management), Allyson Stewart (Jr., Delta, B.C., Nursing), and Charley Geguzis (So., Williamsburg, Iowa).
William Penn was held down over the next two frames, but resumed its scoring in the fourth when Chelsey Huff (Fr., Douds, Iowa, Exercise Science), who led off with a single, touched home plate.
Stewart opened the fifth and final inning with a one-bagger and came around on a Huff single. Abby Wilson (Jr., Calgary, Alberta, Biology) then produced the biggest hit of the first bout with the double that plated both Nayely Martinez (So., Carson, Calif.) and pinchrunner Tianna Soto (Sr., Fontana, Calif.).
With the bases loaded for the second time in the inning, Talamantes walked it off with a single that scored Jayde Tucker (Sr., Los Alamos, N.M., Sociology).
WPU outhit PSC 10-4 with Wilson leading the charge at 3-for-3 with two RBIs and a run scored. Talamantes was 2-for-4 with a pair of RBIs, while Huff ended up 2-for-3 with an RBI and a run. Valeria Quiroga (Jr., Brownsville, Texas, Sociology), who returned to the lineup after missing Sunday’s twinbill against Evangel, earned two walks as well.
Huff not only succeeded at the plate, but also on the pitcher’s rubber, throwing a four-hit shutout. The freshman managed five strikeouts against two walks. She was perfect in the third and fourth frames and recorded eight outs in a row at one point.
WPU struck big in the first inning of the nightcap, putting four on the board. Stewart singled home pinch-runner Sarah Gallivan (Jr., Round Lake, Ill., Secondary Education), while Martinez drew a bases-loaded walk. Geguzis and Stewart completed the scoring by touching home plate on a single by Caitlyn Foster (Fr., Livermore, Calif., Elementary Education).
The Bobcats (10-21, 5-15 Heart) got one back in the top of the second for their one and only run of the day, but the Statesmen answered immediately in the bottom half on Talamantes’ sacrifice fly to plate Lexi Resa (Sr., Liberty, Mo., Biology).
Wilson capped the day by rounding the pads in the fourth frame. Overall, the Statesmen owned a 9-5 advantage in hits with the quartet of Wilson, Stewart, Foster, and Gallivan each posting a pair of base knocks.
Peyton Parker (Sr., LaPorte City, Iowa, Sports Management) limited Peru State’s chances in her six-inning performance. She worked around three walks as well, while Bianca Castillo (Jr., Rio Rico, Ariz.) struck out one in a perfect seventh frame.
“We got back to playing William Penn softball today,” Mike Christner said. “These were a couple of good wins.”
Next Up: William Penn travels to Lamoni Wednesday to face Graceland in a Heart doubleheader at 4 p.m.
