Defensive struggles doom Glenwood in loss

Glenwood scored two runs in the top of the first inning but couldn’t match Clarinda, who plated five runs in the bottom of the first en route to a 15-3 victory over the Rams in Hawkeye 10 Conference softball Thursday.

The Rams (5-8 overall, 3-6 in the conference) trailed 5-2 heading into the third when the Cardinals (6-10 overall, 4-4 in the conference) plated three runs and then ended the game with a seven run bottom half of the fourth.

Glenwood coach Kylee Stanton said a couple wild pitches and passed balls in the bottom of the first contributed to the Rams’ erratic play and allowed the Cardinals to build  a big early lead.

“Defensively, we couldn’t get into a rhythm and we couldn’t catch a break,” Stanton said.

After a scoreless second inning, the Rams began to show some signs of life offensively and then that momentum was stopped cold. In the frame, Coryl Matheny smacked a surefire homerun but Cardinal centerfielder Jordyn McQueen snagged the ball over the wall and ended the Rams’ threat.

“It was gone,” Stanton said. “And their centerfielder waited at the fence, jumped over and reached over and brought it back. All the momentum seemed to go their way after that and we could not get anything going our way after that. Their hitting on top of our errors, we couldn’t dig out of it.”

Lylly Merrill earned the win in the circle after scattering six hits and one earned run in four innings of work. The freshman also helped her own cause with two hits and three RBIs.

Glenwood 5,
Red Oak 4

Kelly Embray smacked her second home run of the season and Allison Koontz struck out 10 in the circle for Glenwood in a 5-4 victory over Red Oak  last Tuesday.

“This was a good team win for us,” said Glenwood coach Kylee Stanton. “Everybody did something to allow us to win that ball game. We played clean defense, no errors, and everyone hit the ball. We would have liked to get across a few more insurance runs but everybody did what they had to do for us to get the victory.”

Koontz scattered five hits and three earned runs to record the win.

“Allie pitched really, really well,” Stanton said of her eighth grader hurler. “She’s doing a real good job spotting the ball and trusting what she’s throwing. We have a couple things that aren’t breaking the way they’re supposed to but she’s still trusting the rest of it.”

Embray’s homer was a two-run shot. She finished her night 2-for-3 with a pair of runs scored.

Lexi Johnson homered and drove in two runs to lead Red Oak.

Rams drop
pair at LC

Council Bluffs Lewis Central picked up a pair of Hawkeye 10 Conference softball wins over Glenwood last Monday.

The Titans (8-4 overall, 5-2 in the conference) won game one 10-0 and the capper 3-2 over the Rams.

Megan Gittens struck out eight and allowed just two hits in the game-one shutout victory. Game two came down to a single hit, said Glenwood coach Kylee Stanton.

The Titans held on to a narrow 1-0 lead in the third when Haley Bach blasted a two-run home run to make 3-0. The Rams would pick up runs in the fourth and the sixth inning and had a potential game-tying runner in scoring position in the top of the seventh but couldn’t complete the comeback.

“One swing made the difference in that one,” Stanton said. “One swing was the end of it. We played good defense and did everything we could to get the win and it didn’t happen. All we needed was a single and we didn’t get it.”

Camdyn Damgaard was credited with the nightcap winner after allowing six hits and one earned run in the win.

Allison Koontz, McKenna Koehler and Coryl Matheny notched a pair of hits combined in the twin bill.

Mia Valquier was credited with the game one loss. The freshman allowed six hits and seven earned runs while striking out four.

Koontz took the tough luck game two loss after allowing five hits and three earned runs.