SOLON — The final week of the regular season featured a preview of the upcoming postseason as well as the annual rivalry doubleheader against WaMaC West foe Clear Creek Amana (CCA).
Solon and CCA split
The Lady Spartans visited the Clippers Monday, June 27 in Oxford. Solon won the opener 3-0 but fell 2-1 in the nightcap.
All three runs in game one were scored in the top of the second inning as Hilary Wilson, Camryn Keith, and Addison Schlote scored with RBIs from Keith, Addie Miller, and Izzy Frees, Frees smacked a double with a single apiece for Wilson, Keith, and Frees. Kendall Jensen went the distance in the circle giving up six hits and no runs.
The “Creek Girls” retaliated with one run each in the first and second innings of game two. McKenna Rogers scored on a Carly Ellison hit in the top of the third. Ellison led the team with two hits including a double, and the one RBI. Wilson and Keith had one hit each with a double for Wilson. Frees was charged the loss after four innings pitching. She gave up three hits and two runs (one earned) and walked one. Ellison pitched two innings giving up four hits and striking out two.
Solon splits with Marion, will face the Wolves again Thursday
Senior Night was celebrated Wednesday, June 29 with Ava Stebral, Meghan O’Neill, Tiffany Primmer, Addison Schlote, Camryn Keith, and Carly Ellison honored for their contributions to the program between games of a doubleheader against Marion. The Wolves took game one 6-3, but Solon battled back in game two, holding off a late charge by Marion, for a 12-11 win.
Keith doubled in the bottom of the second inning of game one, and scored on a loose ball to tie after the Wolves scored on a solo homerun in the top of the inning. Marion put up one run in the third and fourth, both off solo homers, and scored three runs in the seventh. Hilary Wilson doubled, and Keith and Ellison singled in the seventh to load the bases. Primmer knocked an RBI single to score Wilson, while Keith scored on an Izzy Frees RBI.
Wilson and Keith led with two hits each with a double apiece, Mia Stahle, O’Neill, Ellison, Addie Miller, and Primmer knocked one hit apiece. Ellison pitched six innings taking the loss and giving up five hits and four earned runs with one strikeout. Frees pitched one inning giving up two hits and two earned runs and walking one.
Five Lady Spartans scored in the first inning of game two, and Keith drilled a grand slam in the second for an early 9-1 lead. Three Wolves scored in the third making it 9-4 for Solon before a run in the fourth and fifth gave the Lady Spartans an 11-4 lead. Marion scored one in the sixth, and then exploded for six runs in the seventh for an 11-11 tie before O’Neill scored the game winning run.
O’Neill led with three hits including one double and an RBI, Miller and Primmer had two hits apiece with a double for Primmer, and Stebral, Wilson, McKenna Rogers, Keith, and Ellison had one hit each with four RBIs for Keith and two for Wilson.
Frees took the win with 1/3 inning in the circle giving up one hit. Zoey Grimm, a freshman, pitched 4.2 innings giving up seven hits, ten runs (seven earned), walking six, and striking out three. Kendall Jensen pitched two innings giving up two hits and one earned run and striking out one.
Solon and Marion battle Thursday, July 7 at 7:00 p.m. in a Class 4A Region 7 quarterfinal round contest in Solon with the winner advancing to meet CCA Saturday, July 9 in Oxford in the semifinals. The Regional Final is set for Tuesday, July 12 at the site of the highest remaining ranked team. Fort Madison and Keokuk also meet July 7 with the winner advancing to face Burlington in the semis.
Demons and Falcons fall, Trojans reign
The Washington (Iowa) Demons fell 12-1 to Solon in a non-conference game Friday, July 1 in Washington. The Lady Spartans scored two runs in the top of the second, one in the fourth, four in the fifth, and put the game away with five runs in the seventh. The Demons’ run came in the fifth.
Hillary Wilson led at the dish with three hits including a single, a double, and homerun. Wilson drove in two runs as well. Addie Miller and Izzy Frees belted out two hits each with two RBIs for Frees. Mia Stahle, Meghan O’Neill, Ava Stebral, Camryn Keith, and Carly Ellison had one hit each with an RBI for O’Neill, Stebral, Keith, Ellison, and Tiffany Primmer. Kendall Jensen took the win with five innings in the circle giving up four hits and one earned run. She walked two and struck out three. Frees pitched two no-hit innings.
Saturday, July 2 the ladies competed in Ottumwa’s tournament defeating West Burlington 13-3 and falling to Fairfield 8-3.
Solon put up three runs in the second and third innings against the Falcons and boggled the birds with a seven-run assault in the sixth inning. West Burlington scored two in the fourth and one in the sixth. O’Neill and Keith produced three hits each, Stahle and Miller had two each with a pair of doubles and five RBIs for Miller, while Stebral, Wilson, Frees, and Primmer had one hit each. Ellison pitched the full game giving up four hits and three earned runs, walking one, and striking out three.
Fairfield’s Trojans opened up with five runs in the bottom of the first inning and added one in the third, fifth, and seventh. Stahle, O’Neill, and Frees all scored in the third inning with two hits for O’Neill and one apiece from Stahle, Keith, and Miller. Stahle, Wilson, and Keith had one RBI each.
Solon finished the regular season at 20-15 overall and 12-10 in the WaMaC East finishing second behind 21-1 (30-4 overall) Mount Vernon. Marion finished third in the conference at 12-10 in the East and 20-16 overall.
Carly Ellison delivers a pitch in game one of a doubleheader at home against Marion Wednesday, June 29. The Wolves won 6-3 but the Lady Spartans took game two 12-11, and will face Marion again Thursday, July 7 at home in a Regional semifinal game.