MFL MarMac softball works toward consistency while facing packed schedule
Centerfielder Autumn Shaw scoops up a ball in MFL MarMac’s June 14 loss to Alburnett. (Photos by Audrey Posten)
Eighth grader Devon Meyer collected a hit against the Pirates on June 14.
Katelyn Gerndt sends a ball from third to first for an out in MFL MarMac's June 13 doubleheader against Kee.
Ashley Shaw connects with a pitch in last week's twin bill with Kee.
Lauren Haberichter fires home a pitch in a June 13 game against the Hawks.
Bulldog third baseman Morgan Jacobson looks toward first base for an out in the June 14 game versus Alburnett.
Savannah Schaller was 1-3 with an RBI in game two of MFL MarMac's June 13 doubleheader against Kee.
By Audrey Posten, Times-Register
Last week was another packed schedule for the MFL MarMac softball team, which played nine games over six days. The Bulldogs were 1-8 in that stretch, dropping to 6-19 overall and 4-6 in the Upper Iowa Conference.
The Bulldogs’ first games were a June 13 doubleheader against Kee. The Hawks won the opener 12-0, after holding MFL MarMac hitless in 15 at bats. The lone base runner was Devon Meyer, who walked.
Kee’s offense did not have similar struggles, racking up 16 hits and two walks off Bulldog pitcher Lauren Haberichter. Five defensive errors didn’t help the cause, as six of the Hawks’ 12 runs were considered unearned.
MFL MarMac finally got on the board in game two, but couldn’t overcome an early 5-0 deficit, eventually losing 8-3.
Autumn Shaw had an RBI-double and a walk, and also scored a run, while Savannah Schaller was 1-3 with an RBI. Haberichter and Ayla Gerndt both singled.
Sophomore Morgan Jacobson took the loss, after allowing one hit, five walks, a hit batter and five earned runs in one-third of an inning. Haberichter pitched the remaining six and two-thirds, giving up eight hits but just two earned runs, and striking out seven Hawks.
The Bulldogs were back in action June 14, suffering a 13-1 non-conference loss to visiting Alburnett. The Pirates burned MFL MarMac for 16 hits and also reached five times on errors and stole six bases. Only four of the 13 runs scored on Haberichter were earned.
MFL MarMac’s offense, meanwhile, couldn’t string together baserunners. Ashley Shaw, who reached on a double, scored the lone run on an RBI-single by Haberichter. Meyer also collected a hit.
The Bulldogs followed that up with two tough losses at South Winneshiek on June 15. They dropped the first game of the doubleheader 4-2 after a seventh-inning rally fell short.
Haberichter continued to lead the offensive effort, picking up one of the team’s two hits along with a sacrifice and driving in both runs. She also walked once. Ashley Shaw singled, walked and scored, and Katelyn Gerndt scored after reaching on an error.
Over six innings, Haberichter limited the Warriors to just three hits and three walks. The unearned run bug bit again, though, as South Winn scored half its runs that way.
MFL MarMac led 4-3 through the first three innings of the second doubleheader match-up, but surrendered a three-spot in the fourth inning that gave the Warriors a 6-4 victory.
Haberichter struck out 11 batters, but they managed to snag 10 hits off the senior pitcher, in addition to two walks.
The Bulldogs had six hits of their own, including a triple from Ashley Shaw, who knocked in three runs and scored once. Jacobson and Autumn Shaw both singled and scored, and Haberichter was 1-3 with a walk.
June 17-18 took MFL MarMac to a tournament at West Delaware, where the team went 1-3. The first game was a 14-4 loss to a tough North Linn squad, which entered the match-up with just three losses.
The Lynx piled on 15 hits and drew three walks, and were especially lethal on the base paths, with a whopping 14 steals. Just nine of the runs scored off Haberichter were earned.
The Bulldog offense mustered only one hit in the game, but walked seven times. The lone hit was courtesy of Garnett Niedziejko, who also drove in a run and scored once. Meyer drew a walk, was hit once and scored, and Autumn Shaw and Jacobson both walked and scored.
MFL MarMac’s bats continued to struggle in the second tournament game, a 9-1 loss to Cascade. Haberichter tallied the team’s two hits and drew a walk. She knocked in Ashley Shaw, who’d earlier reached on a free pass.
On the other side of the ball, the Cougars struck out 13 times against Haberichter, but also connected on 10 hits and took advantage of five Bulldog errors. Just four of their runs were considered earned.
The Bulldogs’ only win of the week came next, with a 13-3 rout of North Fayette Valley. It was their bats leading the effort this time around, unleashing eight runs in the bottom of the fourth after the TigerHawks had cut the lead to 4-3 earlier that inning.
MFL MarMac couldn’t keep that going later in the tournament, however, falling 10-0 to Monticello. The Bulldogs were within striking distance through much of the game, down just 4-0 after four innings, but the Panthers scored six times in the fifth to put the contest out of reach.
This week brings another tough stretch, with doubleheaders against Central on June 20 and Clayton Ridge June 22. MFL MarMac will travel to Central City on June 24, then play in a tournament at Dunkerton on June 25.
