Burlington, IA – Indian Hills Softball rolled past Southeastern on Sunday to extend the team's winning streak to 22 consecutive games. The Warriors needed just five innings in each contest, winning game one 15-0 and game two 11-0.
The Warriors completed the four-game weekend Iowa Community College Athletic Conference (ICCAC) series sweep of the Blackhawks in convincing fashion at the Wagner Complex. The Warriors hit a total of 10 home runs on the day, including eight in the opener. Indian Hills outscored the Blackhawks 35-2 over the course of the four games with 14 home runs hit.
"Today I saw us make a shift in our pregame and being locked in," stated head coach Lindsay Diehl. "We made adjustments at the plate from yesterday and jumped on the board early. That set the offensive tone for the day."
After a thrilling game one win on Saturday that saw the Warriors elude the Blackhawks 1-0 in nine innings, Indian Hills caught fire from the getgo on Sunday. The Warriors plated eight runs in the opening frame of game one. Kennedy Preston (Carlisle, IA/Carlisle) connected on a two-run home to spark the offense. Leading 4-0 in the first, Destiny Lewis (Indianola, IA/Indianola) blasted a grand slam to double the lead.
Sydney Anderson (Elkhart, IA/North Polk) and Breanna Newton (Bettendorf, IA/Bettendorf) went back-to-back with solo home runs to open the second inning. Abbi Cataldo (Altoona, IA/Southeast Polk) delivered a two-run shot, her second of the year to make it 12-0. Preston added her second home run of the game, a solo shot in the fifth before Alex Beard (Albia, IA/Albia) followed up with a solo shot of her own. Gracie Jevyak (Davenport, IA/Davenport Assumption) capped the scoring in the fifth with a solo home run, her first of the season.
Anderson, Preston, Beard, and Cataldo all finished game one with a pair of base hits as the Warriors collected 13 knocks as a team.
Madi Huisman (Ankeny, IA/Ankeny Centennial) moved to 11-2 in the circle with four scoreless innings. TJ Stoaks (Lenox, IA/Lenox) made her first appearance in the scoring, sitting the Blackhawks down in order in the fifth.
The throttling continued in the nightcap as Lewis led off the game with a solo home run on a 1-0 pitch to centerfield. The Warriors added five runs in the second, highlighted by a second home run from Lewis, a three-run shot to make it 6-0 in favor of the visiting team. Preston and Beard each added RBI singles in a five-run third to give the Warriors its second win of the day.
Lewis went 3-3 with four RBI in game two while Beard and Yanna Roberts (Davenport, IA/Davenport North) added two hits apiece.
Ryann Cheek (Eldridge, IA/North Scott) tossed a complete game to move to 3-0 on the year. The southpaw struck out seven while yielding just three baserunners, all coming by way of a single.
Diehl noted the presence of the Warrior pitching staff that contributed to Sunday's success. "Three pitchers saw the circle today and all three had a handle on the zone and contained hitters."
"It took all 21 today from kids in the dugout being loud and running charts, kids in the bullpen, and subs off the bench getting hits. Defense also did a great job today with some heavy winds on the day."
The Warrior offense continues to rank near the top of the national leaderboards in a flurry of offensive categories. The team's .717 slugging percentage currently ranks fifth overall among 149 teams. The Warriors rank sixth with 69 home runs and eighth with 145 extra base hits.
Individually, Lewis ranks third overall with a 1.223 slugging percentage and fifth overall with 17 home runs on the year. After posting a 15-game hitting streak earlier in the year, Lewis is currently riding a nine-game streak.
In the circle, the Warriors rank seventh overall with a .209 batting average against. Huisman has led the charge for the Warriors, ranking 16th nationally with a 1.18 earned run average.
The Warriors are set to host Kirkwood Community College on Wednesday afternoon at R.L. Hellyer Field for a doubleheader. First pitch is set for 2:00 PM. Fans can catch all of the action on GoHillsTV.
Team dinner after the sweep! Thanks to the Mehaffy's for having us! pic.twitter.com/uzkbL4HmSA
— Indian Hills Softball (@WarriorSoftball) April 10, 2022