RD Keep/North Mahaska Communications
North Mahaska’s Kayla Readshaw slides past Summer Larue of Cardinal. Readshaw would eventually score.
North Mahaska’s softball season came to an end Wednesday on its home field in the quarterfinals of the Class 2A Region 2 tournament. Cardinal pounded out 12 hits in a 6-2 victory. Cardinal will face Pella Christian in the semifinals.
Cardinal scored a run in the first inning but could not find the home base until the fifth inning. Kayla Readshaw and Addie Falb gave North Mahaska (19-6) the lead in the bottom of the second inning. Trailing 6-2 in the bottom of the seventh, North Mahaska received four walks and a single but had two runners thrown out stealing and left bases loaded.
“That’s on me,” said NM coach Mark Schroeder. “As a coach I have got to do a better job of relaying the situation. Down by four we probably shouldn’t have been trying to steal. All year long we have been living and dying by the sword. I’m not going to fault them for stealing. The catcher made two great throws.”
Cardinal took the lead for good in the top of the fifth with a two-out single, a walk and an RBI-single. The Comets would add a run in the sixth and two more in the seventh.
North Mahaska made some solid plays on defense including a scoring threat in the third inning. NM catcher Kylie Van Weelden made a short throw to Addie Falb at second who threw it back to Van Weelden to stop the runner at third. She threw the ball to Kayla Readshaw. Van Weelden chased down the runner to stop the threat.
In the sixth inning with runners at first and third, A ball was hit, and it appeared Falb caught the ball. She flipped the ball to Maddie Doonan at first for the force and a run came scored. North Mahaska thought it was an inning ending play. After conferring, the umpires ruled Falb did not make the catch but did get the out on the batter going to first.
“I thought on defensive end we played pretty well,” said Schroeder. “They had some runners. We had that first and third play which was big and a potential double play that didn’t end up happening.”
The big blow came in the top of the final inning when Erika Haines singled and Sophia Brown homered to right-center field for the Comets’ last two runs.
Doonan, Regan Grewe, Readshaw and Falb each had hits for the Warhawks. Grewe had the lone extra base hit with a double. Grewe took the loss in her final game as a Warhawk. She gave up six runs on 12 hits, two walks and three strikeouts.
Brown led Cardinal with three hist and two RBI. Autumn Sertterh, Haines and Kolbi Saner each singled. Maclain Hickenbottom picked up the victory for the Comets. She allowed two runs on four hist, seven walks, two hit batsmen and struck out eight.
It was the final game for three seniors, Cali Sampson, Readshaw and Grewe.
“Cali has been playing since eighth grade,” said Schroeder. “She has battled injury, but she was a rock start for us in left field.
Kayla has moved it all around. She has been super solid playing third and second base for us and just being a lightning rod on the basepaths, which we kind of got to see tonight. Regan is just one of those players you like to have. She is getting looked at as one of the Class 2A players of the year. I know tonight is going to eat at her because she has such a high standard for herself.”