The Iowa softball team fell to Iowa State, 5-0.
By Mario Williams
For the third year in a row, the Iowa Corn Cy-Hawk series Trophy will stay in Ames.
The Iowa softball team lost to Iowa State, 5-0, the last time the two in-state schools will face each other in any sport this season. While the final score of the series ends up in a tie, the trophy will stay in Ames.
Iowa softball has lost five games in a row, and its record drops to 13-36.
Elizabeth Wiegand got the start in the circle for Iowa and was attacked early. It was a scoreless first inning for both rivals, but Iowa State quickly changed that. In the second inning, the Cyclones had two singles, a double, and a sacrifice bunt, and two Hawkeye errors gave them an early 2-0 lead.
“Unfortunately, we ran into two outs at third and busted our own bubble early on,” Iowa head coach Marla Looper said in a release. “We got something going there at the end, but it just wasn’t enough. It was a tough environment to play in, but we had our opportunities, and we just didn’t take advantage of them.”
Iowa State rode the momentum and scored 3 runs on 4 hits in the top of the fourth inning. This led Looper to make a pitching change, first bringing in Erin Riding and then Shayla Starkenburg. Riding lasted less than an inning, while Starkenburg finished out the game, allowing just 1 hit.
Meanwhile, Iowa State’s starting pitcher — freshman Savannah Sanders — pitched seven scoreless innings, notching 5 strikeouts. The Hawkeyes managed only 4 hits, and Sanders walked 4.
“She mixed speeds really well; her change-up was super-effective, and she kept their hitters off-balance,” Iowa state head softball coach Stacey Gemeinhardt-Cesler told Cyclone TV. “She stayed within herself, and sometimes that’s hard to do as a freshman.”
Iowa had an opportunity to score in the top of the seventh with three runners on but wasn’t able to convert. That has seemed to be the story of the season for the Hawks.
Iowa will close out its regular season, and probably its last three games with a series against Minnesota. It won’t be an easy fight.
“Minnesota is a good team,” Looper said in a release. “They are No. 2 in our conference and one of the top-ranked teams in the country. They are a going to be a tough team to face, but we don’t ever back down from anyone. It’s our senior weekend and our alumni weekend. We need to send our seniors out on a high note.”
Follow @Marioxwilliams for Iowa softball news, updates, and analysis.
