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CROFTON - The Hartington 18U Penguin softball team finished a busy week in its league tournament here June 30 where the Penguins went 1-2 with a pair of losses to Crofton and Verdigre sandwiched around a win over Wausa in the second round.
Verdigre bounced the Penguins from the tournament 7-4 after Hartington stayed alive in the double elimination tourney with a 10-7 win over Wausa. Crofton, the eventual league tournament champion, nipped Hartington 8-7 in the opening round.
“The girls really got tired as the day went on,” Penguin’s manager Brice Grutsch said. “We only had 10 players, it’s always hard when you fall into the consolation bracket early in the day.”
It was the fifth time Hartington and Verdigre had played this season with the games being split 2-2 heading into the tournament contest.
The Penguins won the first two games against Verdigre 11-1 and 9-4 in early June while Verdigre swept a doubleheader 9-0 and 11-2 in Hartington on June 25.
Verdigre won this one by the 7-4 final but it was the Penguins who got on the board first.
Mani Lange worked a walk to open the game on four straight pitches then Alexys Hahne slapped a single into left field to chase Lange to third.
Blair Wakeley followed with another single to send Lange across the plate and leave Hahne at second.
Olivia Grutsch singled into left field, but Hahne was thrown out at third base on the play for the first out of the inning.
A strikeout and a ground out ended the threat.
Verdigre would take the lead in the second frame by scoring three runs, but Hartington made it 3-2 in the top of the third when Hahne got aboard with a walk and stole second.
Wakeley came to the plate and doubled past third base to score Hahne.
After a strikeout made it one out, Hazel Hochstein drew a walk, but Wakeley was picked off third just before Jade Ford doubled to center field.
The Penguin at bat ended with a fly out to the shortstop.
“The long day and a couple of dumb coaching mistakes hurt us,” said Grutsch. “Alexys (Hahne) pitched well all day but ran out of gas in the game. I didn’t get her out of there quick enough and too many walks is what let them score seven runs.”
In the Wausa game, the Penguins fell behind 6-0 before Hochstein got a rally started in the in the bottom of the second with a single past the shortstop.
While Jade Ford was drawing a walk, Hochstein stole second and advanced to third on a wild pitch.
Emilie Claussen would strikeout, but she kept alive long enough for the Penguins to clear the bases with a stolen base, a passed ball, which scored both runners, Ford from second base.
Lia Meisenheimer and Kiersten Hans were both hit by the Wausa pitcher then Mani Lange worked a walk.
Hans would score on an error by the second baseman, then Wakeley singled past the shortstop to score Meisenheimer and Lange and make it 6-5 in favor of the Vikings.
Olivia Grutsch singled to move Wakeley to third then Hochstein smacked the ball up the middle for a base hit to score Wakeley and Grutsch and give the Penguins their first lead of the game, 7-6.
Ford singled to score Hochstein and stole her way around the bases to make it 9-6.
Mani Lange singled in the third and eventually scored for Hartington’s final run of the game.
In the opening round, the eventual champions scored two runs in the top of the first inning, but the Penguins responded with one of their own in the bottom half of the frame.
Crofton went up 5-1 in the second but Hartington erupted for five runs in the third.
Lange and Wakeley scored after they had both singled and Grutsch doubled to left field.
Hoxhstein drew a walk then Ford stepped to the plate and clobbered an inside the park home run to clear the bases and make the score 6-5.
Hartington would add to the lead in the fourth Wakeley sent Lange home with a double to left field, but Crofton would tie it up in the top of the fifth then went ahead later in the at bat for the 8-7 final score.
Hartington managed to get a twoout single from Emilie Claussen in the bottom of the inning but a ground out ended the inning and the game as time expired.
Against Ponca in a triangular with Elk Point-Jefferson, the Penguins lost a pair of one-run games by the 2-1 final against Ponca and 8-7 against EPJ.
“We really struggled offensively against Ponca,” Grutsch said. “Like usual, we had good pitching and pretty solid defense, we just needed more offense.”
Ford gathered the lone hit for Hartington in the game and Hahne had a more than respectable performance in the circle going five innings and allowing only five hits and two runs and issuing just two walks.
Hartington fell behind Elk Point-Jefferson 6-0 in the first inning and the lead grew to 8-0 at the end of the second inning.
The Penguins came roaring back in the third with seven runs.
Mani Lange, Claussen and Vayda Lippert all walked to open the seventh before a Wakeley single scored Claussen.
A Nora Lange single later in the atbat loaded the bases after Lippert stole home and a Hahne walk sent Mani Lange across the plate.
Nora Lange scored on a ground out, Hahne scored on a Ford single and Ford scored on a Claussen single.
Unfortunately the rally ended with a strikeout and time expired in the bottom of the inning with EPJ at bat.
“Batting is getting better,” Grutsch said. “As long as that continues I think state will be fun in a couple of weeks. That’s kind of our focus from here on.”
Hartington will head to Hastings for the Class D State Fast Pitch Tournament July 12 -14.
Verdigre def. Hartington Penguins 7-4. H10111XX-490 V0340XXX-740 WP: UA LP: Alexys Hahne. 2B: Alexys Hahne, Blair Wakeley, Jade Ford (H). HR: Verdigre. Hartington Penguins def. Wausa 10-7. W0502XXX-791 H091XXXX-1070 WP: Alexys Hahne LP: UA. 2B: Blair Wakeley (H); Wausa. Crofton defeats Hartington Penguins 8-7. C23003XX-880 H10510XX-7102 WP: UA LP: Alexys Hahne. 2B: Blair Wakeley, Olivia Grutsch (H); Crofton (3). HR: Jade Ford (H). Elk Point-Jefferson def. Hartington 8-7. HAR007XXXX-750 EPJ620XXXX-830 WP: UA LP: Alexys Hahne. Ponca defeats Hartington Penguins 2-1. H000010X-110 P100100X-250 WP: UA LP: Alexys Hahne.
