Washburn's Jaycee Ginter looks for a pitch as Washburn takes on Fort Hays State (photo by Rex Wolf /TSN )
Freshman Jaycee Ginter threw the first-no hitter for Washburn softball in more than a decade Friday against Fort Hays State. [Photo courtesy of Washburn Athletics]
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Washburn University freshman pitcher Jaycee Ginter treated Friday's performance against Fort Hays State like it was just another day.
It wasn't.
Making only the ninth start and 12th appearance of her college career, the former Shawnee Heights softball star hurled Washburn's first no-hitter in more than a decade and was just one walk away from a perfect game as the Ichabods topped the Tigers 2-0 in the first game of a MIAA doubleheader en route to a split at Gahnstrom Field.
Ginter, who improved to 8-1 on the season, was the first Washburn pitcher to pitch a no-hitter since Kelsey Novotny accomplished that feat on Feb. 19, 2011.
"I was excited, but I really don't think that I did anything that special,'' Ginter said. "I think my team was basically there backing me up. They made a lot of defensive plays that kind of helped me.''
Ginter did say she continues to feel more comfortable at the collegiate level with each outing.
"It defnitely took some getting used to, but now that the season is up and going I feel more confident and just better about myself,'' Ginter said.
Washburn coach Brenda Holaday knew she was getting a gem when she landed Ginter out of Shawnee Heights, but said the Ichabod standout has made dramatic improvement since the season started.
"The improvement that she's made from our first weekend in Lubbock to now has been fantastic and she's on a steady climb, both on the mound and at the plate,'' Holaday said.
"She handles pressure and stress well and she likes the big-time moments. She's always performed well in those and putting her out there in the first game to kind of set the tone for us is important. We weren't ready to do that with her at the beginning of the year, but by the time we were ready to start conference we felt like she's ready for that role and she handles it really well.''
Ginter gave her team the only run it would need in the bottom of the first inning when her double scored Marrit Mead, who had singled.
Fort Hays State Hailey Chapman turned in a solid pitching performance herself, allowing just two runs on eight hits, but the Tigers couldn't get anything going against Ginter while Mead knocked in an insurance run for the Ichabods in the fourth.
First baseman Kimi Patterson went 3 for 3 for Washburn while Mead went 2 for 3.
While the opener was all Washburn, Fort Hays State and pitcher Michaelanne Nelson turned the tables on the Ichabods in the second game to snap WU's win streak at nine games with a 4-0 shutout as Nelson threw a 2-hitter and struck out 11.
Fort Hays State (9-11 overall, 3-1 in the MIAA) scored all four of its runs in the top of the fourth while Nelson only allowed singles in the first and seventh.
"Michaelanne Nelson is a good pitcher in this conference and she has been,'' said Holaday, whose Ichabods well to 17-4 and 3-1 in the league. "She was really good for them last year in the shortened season.
"We told our kids she would be extremely tough and the (strike) zone helped her, but we also didn't make the adjustments that you need to make at the college level.''
Fort Hays State coach Adrian Pilkington was thrilled with the way her Tigers answered after being no-hit in the opener.
"I'm certainly proud of the kids, the way that they bounced back,'' Pilkington said. "They could have come out a little bit flat after that first one, but they didn't. They had a focus and they started from inning one.''
After having their win streak snapped Holaday's Ichabods will try to get back on track in Saturday's 1 p.m. home doubleheader against Nebraska-Kearney.
"It's about responding and I'll be honest with you, I'm curious to see that as well because a lot of time we have seven freshman on the field at a time between redshirt freshmen and regular freshmen,'' Holaday said. "We think they're going to respond. We feel good about our program and what's going on in it, but until you see it, you don't know.''
FIRST GAME
WASHBURN 2, FORT HAYS STATE 0
Fort Hays State 000 000 0 -- 0 0 1
Washburn 100 100 x -- 2 8 0
Chapman and Breckbill. Ginter and Francis. W -- Ginter (8-1). L -- Chapman (4-4). 2B -- Washburn: Ginter.
SECOND GAME
FORT HAYS STATE 4, WASHBURN 0
Fort Hays State (9-11, 0-3) 000 400 0 -- 4 10 0
Washburn (17-4, 3-1) 000 000 0 -- 0 2 0
Nelson and Breckbill. Hamm, Thissen (4) and Francis. W -- Nelson (5-6). L -- Hamm (9-2). 2B -- Fort Hays State: Adler, Breckbill, Reed.
