By Rick Peterson
TopSports.news
Both of No. 21-ranked Washburn University's MIAA softball games against Central Missouri on Saturday went down to the wire, but that wasn't anything that Ichabod coach Brenda Holaday didn't expect.
Washburn senior Hadley Kerschen drives home the winning run with a walkoff single in Saturday's first game against Central Missouri. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]
Holton product Gracie Gallagher jumps for joy after scoring the game-winning run in Washburn's 2-1 first-game win over Central Missouri. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]
Washburn took a pair of 2-1 wins over the Jennies to improve to 27-5 overall and 6-2 in the conference, but the Ichabods had to come through with a walkoff win in the first game and had to survive a seventh-inning threat by Central Missouri to complete the sweep at Gahnstrom Field.
"They're a great program and I feel like some of the kids in their lineup have been there eight years,'' Holaday said of the Jennies. "They're so good and so experienced and seasoned. They have some Topeka kids on their team that are great kids and have had great careers so you expect a dogfight against them for sure.
"A couple of years ago we had them here and split and then we went to their place for the tournament and they won two out of three and last year we're down there and go 12 innings and end up sweeping.''
In the opener Hadley Kerschen singled to left-center to score the winning run in the bottom of the seventh after Central Missouri (18-11, 4-4) scored its lone run of the game in the top of the inning.
Washburn trailed for the only time all day in the second game after the Jennies scored a run in the top of the third, but freshman Erin Boles singled home both of the Ichabods' runs in the bottom of the fourth to put WU in front and Washburn shut out Central Missouri the rest of the way for the win.
In the opener the Ichabods struck first in their second at bat of the day when Jaden LaBarge started the inning with a ground-rule double down the left field line and then came around to score on a single by Autymn Schreiner up the middle.
Neither team would score again until the Jennies, coached by Shawnee Heights graduate Susan (Punzo) Anderson, pushed an unearned run across the plate with two outs in the top of the seventh, tying the score at 1-1.
In the bottom of the seventh, Schreiner doubled after a nine-pitch at bat to lead off the inning. Than, after a sacrifice bunt by Washburn Rural product Jenna Moore moved pinch-runner Gracie Gallagher to third, Kerschen singled to send Gallagher home with the winning run.
Washburn junior Jaycee Ginter picked up both pitching wins in Saturday's doubleheader sweep over Central Missouri. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]
All-American Jaycee Ginter picked up the first-game pitching win in a pitcher's duel between former Shawnee Heights state-champion teammates Ginter and Central Missouri's Paige Petefish.
Ginter pitched a three-hitter and struck out six while Paige Robbins and Schreiner both had two hits for the Ichabods.
The Jennies pushed across their lone run of the second game with two outs in the third but Washburn jumped back in front in the fourth inning when Ginter led off the frame with a single and after Allison Hemsath entered as a pinch runner, Marrit Mead doubled down the left-field line to send Hemsath to third.
With two outs, Boles singled to right field, scoring both Hemsath and Mead as the Ichabods gained the 2-1 lead.
"My mindset was just to move runners and go opposite field and just get on base,'' Boles said.
Boles had hits in both games to improve her batting average to .325 in her freshman season with the Ichabods.
"There's always room for improvement and I'm really excited for the rest of the season,'' Boles said. "At first I felt like I faced a lot of adversity but these past couple of weeks I've really been grinding it out and trying to make adjustments.''
Ginter returned to the game in the circle to pitch the final three innings, striking out five and allowing two hits and no runs to improve to 19-2 on the year.
The Jennies threatened in the top of the seventh, moving runners to second and third, but Ginter retired the side with a strikeout and an infield popout to end the game.
The Ichabods were limited to five hits, with Robbins, Ginter, Mead, Boles and Kimi Patterson accounting for the WU hits.
Washburn will return to action next weekend with conference twinbills at Missouri Western and Northwest Missouri.
FIRST GAME
WASHBURN 2, CENTRAL MISSOURI 1
Central Missouri 000 000 1 -- 1 3 0
Washburn 010 000 1 -- 2 8 1
Petefish and Howes. Ginter and Wagner. W -- Ginter (18-2). L -- Petefish (6-2). 2B -- Washburn: LaBarge, Schreiner. 3B -- Washburn: Robbins.
FIRST GAME
WASHBURN 2, CENTRAL MISSOURI 1
Central Missouri 001 000 0 -- 1 6 1
Washburn 000 200 x -- 2 5 0
Diggs, Lay (4) and Howes. Walker, Cheeks (3), Ginter (5) and Patterson, Wagner. W -- Ginter (19-2). L -- Diggs (4-4). 2B -- Washburn: Mead.
