(Griswold, IA) – The Griswold Tigers (24-3) have had to go into every game on their toes as of late while facing off against teams such as #7 West Monona, #14 Treynor, and even #11 Earlham. Griswold was able to come out of that three-game series with two wins and a loss over Earlham as they were not able to catch a break in between all the state-ranked competition. The Tigers have taken advantage of these games to play their best ball at the end of the regular season.
As the Tigers are playing some of their best ball, Head Coach Jody Rossell is very confident in her team and the way that they are currently playing. With the combination of big hits at the plate and stellar plays on the field, the Tigers are on a good track to get on a winning path.
One essential component to the success of Griswold has been pitcher Karly Millikan. Just last week, Millikan earned her 700th career strikeout to showcase her stellar career. Just this season alone, she has a 0.84 ERA with 194 strikeouts with just 90 hits, 8 walks, and 15 earned runs allowed. Even at the plate, she is batting .352 with 26 RBIs and a home run. Millikan has been an essential player both on and off the field with her leadership and athletic play.
Speaking of Millikan and her leadership, a total of five girls are leading the team while batting over .350 this season. That includes Dakota Reynolds (.512), Marissa Askeland (.476), Whitney Pennock (.403), Abby Gohlinghorst (.353), and Karly Millikan (.352). The team as a whole is batting .334 at the plate and that comes from plate discipline and confidence.
While Griswold’s last regular season game against Riverside was postponed to Wednesday, the Tigers will now look ahead even further to postseason play which starts on July 10th. On their side of the bracket, the Tigers have beaten four out of the five teams and have not yet played St. Albert this season. If they are able to advance, they would likely take on the #1 Martensdale-St Marys Blue Devils in the final round of the regional tournament. Coach Rossell said that they’re not focusing on those matchups or even the games ahead of time, but rather bringing it to the here and now with one pitch at a time.
Griswold will now battle Riverside on Wednesday, July 3rd at 4:30 p.m. with their postseason matchup against either St. Albert or East Mills next Wednesday, July 10th. KSOM 96.5 will have all the coverage of the July 3rd and 10th competitions.
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