by Scott Watson
The Clear Lake softball team (10-11) had five games last week, going 3-2 on the stretch. The team started with games against Iowa Falls and Forest City, winning them both, before dropping two to Newman Catholic and Clarion-Goldfield-Dows.
CL 5, IF-A 3
The Lions softball team (8-9) played Iowa Falls-Alden (2-12) on Monday, June 19, taking a 5-3 win on the day.
“It is always tough to get road conference wins, and I thought the girls showed a lot of grit and resolve to find what it takes to finish the game strong,” said Clear Lake Head Coach Seth Thompson.
The game started slow, with both teams going scoreless for the first two innings. Clear Lake was the first to score, taking a run in the third and adding two more in the fifth. Urgency set in for both teams to end the game, with IFA scoring two runs in the sixth.
Clear Lake matched the runs, and while the Cadets managed one run in the seventh, it wasn’t enough for the tie.
“Annika had a big home run for us in the fifth inning, and our offense did a great job of rallying, hitting two big runs with two outs in the last inning for what proved to be the winning runs of the game,” said Coach Thompson.
The Lions had eight hits, five going for singles, two for doubles, and one for a home run. They were walked three times and had five RBIs.
Annika Nelson went one-for-four at the plate with a home run and three RBIs. Taylor Schwenn and Alivia Paine both went two-for-four at the plate with one RBI each. Alaina Hartl and Camryn Allsbrook both went one-for-two at the plate. Makella Jacobs led the team in stolen bases with two.
“Makella, Taylor, and Alivia strung together great at bats and our defense and pitching did its job to finish the job,” said Coach Thompson.
The Lions’ defense was tight, allowing no errors with Jezzie Thompson allowing only four hits, three earned runs, two walks, and seven strikeouts.
CL 13, Forest City 3
The Lions (9-9) hosted the Forest City Indians (3-13) on Tuesday, June 20, winning the game by a convincing 13-3 score.
The game started close, with Forest City holding a 3-2 lead going into the bottom of the third inning. The Lions were steadfast in their scoring, chalking up a run in every inning and going on a six-run tear in the fourth inning. They scored four more in the fifth inning to end the game by run rule after previously being down.
“I thought our offense did a great job of applying constant pressure, with runs in each inning and 10 in the last two innings combined. Makella led our offensive attack with two doubles and six RBIs, and our offense had six extra base hits in the game,” said Clear Lake Head Coach Seth Thompson.
The Lions had 10 hits in the game, hitting four singles, five doubles, and a triple. They tallied 11 RBIs and were walked eight times.
Annika Nelson went one-for-two with a double and two walks. Makella Jacobs went two-for-two at the plate with two doubles, six RBIs and a walk. Taylor Schwenn went two-for-four with a single and a triple with two RBIs.
Alivia Paine and Madi Ott both went one-for-two with an RBI and a walk each. Alaina Hartl went one-for-two with a walk. Camryn Allsbrook went two-for-three and had one RBI. The team totaled six stolen bases.
Defensively, the Lions had three errors with Jezzie Thompson allowing only two hits, one earned run, four walks, and eight strikeouts.
“This will be the team we play in the first round of regional play, so hopefully we can keep this momentum going in the postseason,” said Coach Thompson.
Humboldt 7, CL 1
The Lions (9-10) hosted Humboldt (12-9) on Wednesday, June 21 for a game and lost the bout 7-1.
The Lions struggled to get runs in the game, only crossing home plate once, and not until the sixth inning.
“Although we collected more hits than them during the game, the difference was our defense giving up a few extra outs and our baserunners giving them a few extra outs with miscues,” said Clear Lake Head Coach Seth Thompson.
Annika Nelson went two-for-three at the plate with a double and a single, plus a walk. Jezzie Thompson, Taylor Schwenn, Alivia Paine, and Cheyanne Schroeder all went one-for-three at the plate. The team totaled seven hits with no stolen bases.
The defense made six errors in the game with Jezzie Thompson allowing only six hits, three earned runs, one walk, and took five strikeouts.
“I thought Jezzie pitched well against one of the top teams in our conference, and picked up her 100th strikeout of the season and her career. She is young and still has a ways to go as a pitcher to reach her full potential, but she has done a nice job as an eighth grader, giving her team a chance to win.”
Newman 2, CL 1
The Lions (9-11) played a strong Newman Catholic team (23-6) on Thursday, June 22, losing the game 2-1.
Clear Lake was first to score, taking a 1-0 lead after the first inning, but that would be it for the Lions’ offense. It wasn’t until the sixth inning that Newman first scored, taking two runs into the win column.
“This turned into a pitcher’s duel. After Annika led the game off with a great at bat for a triple and scoring, neither team could get any more runs until the bottom of the sixth when they got the runs that turned out to be the difference,” said Thompson.
Clear Lake only had two hits in the game, one for a single and one a triple. Annika Nelson and Madi Ott went one-for-three at the plate with Nelson taking a triple. The team struck out 14 times.
Defensively, they had six errors, with Jezzie Thompson allowing only five hits, no earned runs, two walks, and four strikeouts.
“With six errors, we were not as good on defense as we can be, and it is something we have to work hard to correct heading into postseason play,” said Coach Thompson.
