Published on May 8, 2025 8:42 am
Last Updated on May 8, 2025 11:40 am
BY MILLIE LANGE
Windsor/Stewardson-Strasburg and Effingham St. Anthony advanced to the championship game of the National Trail Conference Softball Tournament with victories Wednesday.
The opener was a pitcher’s duel and it took a perfect game to win it as Windsor/Stewardson-Strasburg edged Altamont, 1-0.
Samantha Hayes went the distance for the Hatchets, tossing a no-hitter with no walks while striking out 13.
Meanwhile, Grace Lemke threw a two-hitter for Altamont, giving up one run. She did not walk a batter and struck out 11.
The lone run came in the bottom of the sixth when S. Hayes drove in the run with a double. Katelyn VonBehrens had a single.
In the second contest, Dieterich handled St. Elmo/Brownstown by an 11-1 count. The game ended in the sixth due to the 10-run rule.
Dieterich held a 2-1 opening inning lead then tacked on six in the second, two in the third and one in the sixth.
The Maroons had six hits led by Kinley Will with a single, triple and an RBI, Lucie Jansen with a single and double, Aliza Garner with a single and two RBI and Brittney Niemerg with an RBI.
B. Niemerg picked up the win on the mound. She went four innings, allowing one run on three hits, two walks and striking out six.
St. Elmo/Brownstown was led by Dayana Haslett with a single and an RBI, Cami Haslett and Madi Miller with a single each.
Effingham St. Anthony tallied a 15-11 victory over South Central.
The Bulldogs edged out to a 2-0 opening inning lead and led 5-0 after two. St. Anthony added on two runs in the fourth and fifth and finished off with five in the seventh.
Adysen Rios led the way for the Bulldogs with four singles and three RBI. Julia Schultz and Camille Wines had two singles and three RBI each. Ella Johnson added a single and double while Nancy Ruholl finished with two singles and an RBI. Lilly Gannaway tallied two singles and Ava Walton added two RBI.
Ruholl went three innings for the pitching win. She gave up two runs on three hits, four walks and struck out four.
South Central was led in hitting by Kyra Swift with a home run and two RBI. Kinlee Thompson and Bri Buchanan had two singles and an RBI each and Lauren Johnson added a single and an RBI.
In game eight, Neoga edged North Clay/Clay City, 6-5.
Neoga edged out to a 1-0 lead in the second and led 2-0 in the third. North Clay came back to move into a 3-2 lead in the top of the fourth but Neoga came back with two in the bottom of the frame to take a 4-3 lead. North Clay/Clay City tallied one in the fifth to tie the score.
Neoga came back once again with two to take a 6-4 lead. North Clay rallied with a run in the seventh only to fall short.
Neoga finished with 11 hits. Hannah Propst had two singles, a double and drove in three runs. Josalyn Brandenburg had a single, double and an RBI while Audrey Kepp had a single and double.
Propst picked up the win in the mound. She went all seven innings, allowing five runs on nine hits. She did not give up a walk and struck out 12.
North Clay was led by Avery Romack with two singles and two triples. Faith Jones added three singles and two RBI. Ava Zimmerman had a double and two RBI and Ava Fleener a single and an RBI.
The tournament comes to a close Friday with Windsor/Stewardson-Strasburg and St. Anthony meeting for the championship at 6 p.m. Altamont faces South Central at 4:15 for third place. Dieterich and Neoga square off for the consolation championship at 4:15 p.m.
Game Five
Altamont 000 000 0 — 0-0-2
WSS 000 001 x — 1-2-0
WP — S. Hayes. LP — Lemke.
Altamont — no hits
Windsor/Stewardson-Strasburg — Hayes, double, 1 RBI; VonBehrens, single
Game Six
SEB 100 000 — 1-3-3
Dieterich 262 001 — 11-6-0
WP — B. Niemerg. LP — Claycomb.
St. Elmo/Brownstown — D. Haslett, single; C. Haslett, single; Miller, single
Dieterich — Niemerg, 1 RBI; Garner, single, 2 RBI; Boerngen, 1 RBI; Jansen, single, double; Will, single, triple, 1 RBI; Wohltman, single
Game Seven
St. Anthony 230 220 5 — 14-15-3
South Central 001 202 0 — 5-11-4
WP — Ruholl. LP — Johnson.
St. Anthony — Rios, 4 singles, 3 RBI; Gannaway, 2 singles; Schultz, 2 singles, 3 RBI; Walton, 2 RBI; Wines, 2 singles, 3 RBI; Vonderheide, single; Johnson, single, double; Ruholl, 2 singles, 1 RBI
South Central — Ky. Swift, single, 2 RBI; Peddicord, single; Ka. Swift, single; Thompson, 2 singles,1 RBI; Johnson, single, 1 RBI; Buchanan, 2 singles, 1 RBI; Montes, single; Feldhake, single; Reid, single
Game Eight
North Clay 000 310 1 — 5- 9-5
Neoga 011 202 x — 6-11-2
WP — Propst. LP — Reushen.
North Clay — Romack, 2 singles, 2 triples; Jones, 3 singles, 2 RBI; Fleener, single, 1 RBI; Zimmerman, double, 2 RBI
Neoga — Brandenburg, single, double, 1 RBI; Kepp, single, double; Propst, 2 singles, double, 3 RBI; Gollihar, single; Westendorf, single; Frankie, single; Douglas, single
At Lawrenceville
Newton remained unbeaten with a 5-0 victory over Lawrenceville Wednesday.
The Eagles finished with six hits as Avery Mulvey had a double and an RBI while Allie Hermann and Bailee Frichtl added a single and an RBI each. Allie Stanley finished with an RBI.
Amelia Collins went four innings for the pitching victory. She gave up no runs on two hits, two walks and struck out three.
Newton sports a 5-0 Little Illini Conference record and an 18-0 overall mark.
At Lawrenceville
Newton 011 030 0 — 5-6-1
Lawrenceville 000 000 0 — 0-3-0
WP — Collins. LP — Evans.
Newton — Stanley, 1 RBI; Hermann, single, 1 RBI; Frichtl, single, 1 RBI; Mulvey, double, 1 RBI; Reich, single; Ghast, single; Probst, single
Lawrenceville — Harris, single; Evans, single; Griggs, single