Karlee Warnke Bunts For A Single In The First Inning Of A Loss To MMCRU.

Alyssa Van Beek Comes In From Center Field To Cover Second Base And Tag Out MMCRU’s Cassie Weiler.

By Coach Heather Struve
The Wolverine Softball team had their season opener at home on Monday, May 22 against Harris-Lake Park. South O’Brien jumped out to a 5-0 lead after three innings of play by scoring one run in the second and four more in the third. In the second Maddie Johnson lead off the inning with a base hit and her pinch runner Avery Halverson later scored on a wild pitch. In the third Karlee Warnke drew a walk and then the bats got rolling with three consecutive hits, including a single by Payton Farquhar, a double from Marissa Ebel and then a home run that hit the foul pole in left field by Jinger Nieuwenhuis.
The Wolves scored two runs in the top of the fifth to cut the lead to 5-2, but the Wolverines came back with four runs of their own in the bottom of the fifth to stretch the lead back up to 9-2. The Wolves continued to fight by adding three runs in the top of the sixth, but South O’Brien again countered with four runs in the bottom of the sixth to go up 13-5. HLP could only muster one run in the top of the seventh and the game ended with the Wolverines winning 13-6. It was a great confidence builder and a super way to start out the season!
Shay Hatting got the win on the mound, tossing five innings of the contest. She only gave up one hit and two unearned runs. She walked four and struck out five. Brooklyn Edwards pitched the last two innings and gave up two hits and three earned runs. She struck out four and did not walk any. It was a great team pitching effort by these two!
On offense the Wolverines were lead by Nieuwenhuis who went 3-for-4 with the home run, a double and a single, while collecting four RBI’s. She scored a run and her courtesy runner Kelsee Warnke scored two. Johnson ripped a pair of singles and had an RBI. Alyssa Van Beek crushed a double, scored a run and collected three RBI’s. Ebel also hit a double and scored three times. Hitting singles were Karlee Warnke and Payton Farquhar.
HLP
0 0 0 0 2 3 1 – 6
S. O’Brien
1 4 0 0 4 4 x – 13