March 28, 2024

The rope holds in Fort Dodge

I-35 softball walks it off in extras to arrive at the state semis

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FORT DODGE — Interstate 35 senior Cheyenne Hiatt wasn't academically eligible for state softball last year when the Roadrunners lost a first round game for the second consecutive year.

With one last chance to go deep into the tournament with the strongest senior class in the program's history, Hiatt came through in the biggest spot of her career, singling over the head of the second baseman with one out in the bottom of the eighth to score Slye Richardson from second and push Interstate 35 past Central Springs with a 4-3 win.

Richardson had reached on a leadoff single and moved to second two batters later when Riley Morris reached on a bunt between the pitcher and catcher.

She then came around to score without a throw on Hiatt's base knock as the Roadrunners steadily streamed out of the dugout, the euphoria bursting forth from their faces.

"She’s (Hiatt) been dreaming to have this chance again," Interstate 35 coach Tim Bogs said.

The Roadrunners beeped their way into the Class 2 semifinals Thursday against Eddyville-Blakesburg-Fremont (31-8) Thursday at 5 p.m. on Buena Vista University Diamond (Diamond 1).

The Rockets defeated Waterloo Columbus 7-2 Monday afternoon to advance.

For the first time in the Roadrunners' three successive trips to Fort Dodge, the Roadrunners are winners after day one.

“I was glad to come back because I let my team down a little bit last year," Hiatt said. "I just knew I didn’t want to let them down this year at state so I just kept battling, kept my mind right, and didn’t get so nervous and just hit as hard as I could.”

Hiatt's two-out single to left field in the second inning was Interstate 35's first run of the game.

Interstate 35 fell behind early thanks to an uncommon miscue. After walking two Panther batters and striking out the next two in the top of the first inning, Carlyn Stanley fielded a Hannah Ausenhus comebacker from her knees, got up, and threw the ball past first base. Two runs scored, and the Roadrunners fell behind.

Stanley didn't fret, and neither did her teammates.

"It doesn’t matter what happens because everyone holds the rope," Stanley said. "Everyone has each other’s back. We work as a team so I know if we fall behind, we’re going to do it.”

A monster home run by Central Springs' Hailee Ausenhus in the fourth inning stretched the Panther lead to 3-1. However, that was the last time Stanley allowed the Panthers to score.

More defensive mistakes happened (on Interstate 35's way to four defensive errors), but Stanley struck out 14 batters in helping lead the Roadrunners to victory.

Kate Stanley began to do her damage at plate in the fifth, when her double to the right center gap scored Olivia Carlson, who chopped an infield single to start the frame. That pulled it to 3-2.

Carlson came through again in the seventh when she grounded a chopper to the left side that she barely beat out at first for another single.

Carlson had come in hitting only .203 on the season.

“It was just so amazing. I’ve just been struggling all season and just to come through now, it was just better late than never and I think it was a really great time to show what I can do.”

Lilly Miller followed Carlson with a sacrifice bunt, Carlson moved to third on a passed ball, and Carlyn Stanley walked to put runners on the corners.

Cheyanne Loomis came on to pinch-run for Stanley.

Into the batters box stepped Kate Stanley.

She held her end of the rope once more.

A single up the middle to the left of second base allowed Carlson to sprint home, but Loomis was caught in a rundown when Bogs decided too late to put the brakes on her.

“Kate had two big swings today and so Kate has a really good hard solid base hit and I’m trying to send her (Loomis) and then I realize the center fielder (Lauren Klaahsen) had a pretty good arm and so I try and stop her and didn’t get her stopped in time," Bogs said.

After Wickett popped up behind home plate, the Roadrunners went to the eighth.

Carlyn Stanley, in a zone from the circle, set down three Panthers on strikes in the eighth to send Interstate 35 back to the dish, where the Roadrunners claimed victory.

Hiatt and Carlson, the team's eight and nine hitters in the lineup, combined for four hits, two RBIs and two runs.

"I don’t care who comes up in the lineup, I know that we’re going to hit the ball hard," Carlyn Stanley said. "We have a lot of great hitters up and down. We can come up with our eight and I would still be happy with it because I know everyone is going to hold the rope and get us through the inning."

The win marked the first victory in first round action at Fort Dodge in the program's history, and makes the feelings of a fifth-place finish in 2016 pale in comparison.

“A lot of us seniors this is our third time around and we’ve always kind of struggled getting over that first game," Carlyn Stanley said. "We knew coming into today that we were going to have to play hard because you get up here there’s not a bad team up here. Anyone can get anyone on a given day.”

Two years ago, the Roadrunners fell to Central Springs in Fort Dodge, losing anb 6-2 decision to the same pitcher, Hannah Ausenhus, who was then an eighth-grader.

This time around, the Roadrunners hit the ball hard throughout, even when they weren't scoring. They notched 11 hits.

“We started off slow and kind of worked our way into it," Carlyn Stanley said. "Our momentum started to catch up with us and the more times we see her, the more at-bats that we've had, the better we start to hit.”

The Roadrunners now have two days to prep the strength of the rope as they look forward to a date with Eddyville-Blakesburg-Fremont.

Interstate 35 will make mistakes in that one. They'll do so with the knowledge they have to hold on for the Roadrunner next to them.

“I expect another great game like that," Hiatt said. "Close games. It’s how we’re going to win this tournament."

Interstate 35 4, Central Springs 3

R H E

CS 200 100 0 — 3 2 1

I35 010 001 11 — 4 11 4

CS: Hannah Ausenhus 0K 2BB and Anna Dietrich. I35: Carlyn Stanley 14K 6BB and Shai Major. W — Stanley (27-3). L— Ausenhus (28-5). HR — CS: Hailee Ausenhus 1. 3B — none. 2B — I35: Kate Stanley 1, Shai Major 1. RBI — CS: Hailee Ausenhus 1. I-35: Hiatt 2, Kate Stanley 2. Multiple hitters — I35: Kate Stanley 2, Shai Major 2, Hiatt 2, Carlson 2.