Kenyon-Wanamingo softball is moving on in the postseason.
The No. 5 seed Knights (9-8) dispatched No. 12 Fillmore Central/Lanesboro (4-17) by a 7-1 score in round one of the Class 1A, Section 1 on May 20 in Wanamingo.
The Knights’ offense got going in the latter innings to help pull away for a comfortable win.
This was K-W’s second straight season not only hosting an opening round playoff game, but winning it. The Knights also secured a .500 or better record for the first time since 2012.
The Knights have come a long way under the tutelage of head coach Carrie Anderson and assistant Megan Sabrowsky. They and their players are resurrecing a program that once went two calendar years without tasting victory.
A winless 2019 season begat a 2020 spring sports season wiped away by a global pandemic. The arrow has pointed up ever since.
K-W was grateful for winning against FC/L in round one, but it is hopeful to find more productivity at the plate in order to meet their perceived potential down the road.
“It was good, obviously, because we won, but I feel like our hitting needs to get better if we’re going to go far in the section,” K-W senior pitcher Josie Flom. “We’re definitely working on our hitting because bats create momentum, which leads to good defense.”
Aside from a pair of miscues on the same play that led to the visitor’s lone run in the top of the third inning, K-W committed just one other error. FC/L had seven.
The Knights bounced back and calmed the nerves in a win-or-go home game. Now, they’re among the eight teams who advanced to the double-elimination rounds.
“We had one double error,” Anderson said. “But it was okay; they came back from it. Sometimes we’ve hung on to that and then the next person gets nervous and makes an error, then the next person and they didn’t carry that through. That was a big win for us not everyone making errors after that.”
FC/L was throwing the ball across the yard to surrender a run in the first inning.
Senior third baseman Vanessa Bartel came in to score after singling, moving to third on an ensuing error and scoring on a throw to first base after a dropped strike three.
The Falcons’ starting pitcher, sophomore Jensyn Storhoff, pitched 1-2-3 innings in the second and third inning. She did not allow a walk in four innings. Two more errors by her defense in the fourth allowed K-W to tag her for three runs in the fourth on one hit. Storhoff allowed two hits and struck out five.
Freshman second baseman Anna Ostertag singled in a run as part of the rally.
“We were a bit nervous and we were swinging too fast for the pitch,” Anderson said. “We weren’t meeting it where we needed to but we still worked hard. Once they got on base they were firing around.”
FL/C reliever Klaudia Biel set down the side in order in the fifth. She did not allow a hit in the sixth when the Knights plated three more.
Back-to-back walks, two more errors and a batter reaching first base on a dropped strike three did the damage. Junior left fielder Amber Lerfald had a sacrifice fly.
Flom matched Storhoff and Biel in pitching a two-hitter. She struck out 10 batters and did not issue a walk.
Opponents have combined to score two runs in Flom’s last four outings, which were all complete games, including a nine-inning affair vs. United South Central.
“I feel like my changeup’s been working well,” Flom said, “and my high ball.”
UP NEXT
K-W moves on to play May 21 at No. 4 Hayfield (12-8) in a game played after the May 22 edition of the Kenyon Leader went to press.
Win or lose, the Knights’ next game is 5:30 p.m. May 23 at Todd Park North in Austin, site of all games from the third round on in the winner’s bracket and all elimination bracket games.
Teams who win during the slate of 5:30 games that day are off until May 28. Losers stick around for a 7 p.m. game that night with the next round on May 27.
First round section playoff results include No. 1 seed Blooming Prairie receiving a bye to face No. 8 Houston, which beat No. 9 Goodhue 1-0.
Hayfield beat No. 13 Spring Grove 10-0.
The other side of bracket includes No. 2 Bethlehem Academy winning 15-0 vs. Lyle/Austin Pacelli, No. 7 Lewiston-Altura 10-4 over No. 10 Mabel-Canton, No. 3 Southland 16-1 vs. No. 14 Schaeffer Academy and No. 6 Wabasha-Kellogg downing No. 11 Rushford-Peterson 4-2.
K-W STATISTICS Kenyon-Wanamingo 7, Fillmore Central/Lanesboro 1 Batting: Anna Ostertag 1-for-2, 2 R, RBI, BB, SB; Vanessa Bartel 1-for-3, R; Addy Lindell 0-for-2, 2 R, BB; Josie Flom 0-for-3, R, SB; Ivette Mendoza 0-for-3, R, RBI; Amber Lerfald 0-for-3, RBI; Eva Jacobson 0-for-3; Chloe Donkers 0-for-3; Kenzie Moore 0-for-4. Pitching: Flom (W) 7 IP, 2 H, 1 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 10 SO, 82 P (63 S, 19 B). e66dd94c-203c-45ea-a104-70cb9b535c69
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