Softball Splits With Ottawa to Open Season

(Ottawa, KS) – Hastings did not take long to get in the win column, winning their first game, 8-3. The Braves responded in the second game with 12 runs to defeat the Broncos, 12-5.

In game one, seniors Isabel Tanabe and Lauren Schneider both singled to open the game and advance to second and third on a groundout. With one out, junior Lauren Lee drove in Tanabe and Schnieder scored on an RBI-groundout from junior Ana Medeiros to put Hastings up 2-0.

Ottawa answered with three in the bottom of the first, starting with a leadoff walk that later scored on a two-out single. Two batters later with two-on, two-out, the Braves doubled in both runners on-base to take a 3-2 lead.

Hastings scored a run in each of the next two innings. Junior Katyn Kappler hit a one-out double and Tanabe brought her home with an RBI-single in the second inning. In the third, sophomore Kaylee Pinneo, Lee, and Medieros all recorded base hits to begin the inning. Senior Lexie Mudloff hit a ground ball that turned into a fielder's choice, scoring Pinneo on the play. They had a chance to add to the lead, but a double play turned by the Braves kept it a 4-3 lead for the Broncos.

Junior Kiera Brack settled down nicely on the mound after allowing the three first inning runs on three hits, by only allowing four hits the rest of the way without another run. She pitched all seven innings, striking out four and walking only one batter.

The Broncos got some insurance runs in the seventh inning, as Schneider doubled with one out and Pinneo reached on an error, then Lee singled in Schneider and Medeiros drove in Pinneo to make it 6-3. Mudloff got hit by a pitch to load the bases and junior Sam Skinner drew a walk to bring in Lee from third. Following the second out, senior Shey Storesund's infield single to third brought Medeiros home.

Brack struck out the first two batters of the inning, then after a single, got the last Brave out on a pop up to secure the 8-3 win. Lee was 3-4 with two RBI's and Medeiros was 2-4 with two RBI's as well. Tanabe, Schneider also recorded two-hit games for Hastings. 

The Braves only scored in two innings of the second game, but that was all they needed to win 12-5 in five innings. Hastings had had the bases loaded on offense with two out to begin the game, but Ottawa got out of it with a flyout.

Hastings got two outs in the first three batters of the second inning, but the Braves managed to scratch across four runs in the inning. The Broncos got on the board in the next half-inning with Mudloff's double scoring Lee from first to make it 4-1.

The bottom of the third was the big difference in the game, as Ottawa managed to score eight runs in the inning. They had four hits, three walks, and capitalized on two Bronco errors to go up 12-1.

The Broncos had a good start to the fourth inning, with freshman Sofia Carroll and freshman Nicole Halsey walking and Tanabe scoring Carroll on an RBI-single. Tanabe scored later in the inning on an RBI-single from Pinneo.

In the fifth, three of the first four batters reached, all by walks. Two of them came around to score with Tanabe and Schneider bringing them home. Hastings had a chance to extend the game to a sixth inning with runners on first and second with two outs, but the Braves enticed a lineout to the pitcher to hold on to the 12-5 win in five innings, as the game was called due to darkness.

Pinneo and Tanabe were each 2-4 with an RBI each, while Schneider was 0-4, but had a team-high 2 RBI's.

Up next, Hastings will play at Kansas Wesleyan on Saturday, Feb. 15 for a double-header beginning at 1pm in Salina, KS.