Entering Friday night’s Heart of Iowa Activities Conference softball game in Jefferson vs. PCM (Monroe), Greene County’s coaches, players, and fans, knew a Ram victory was necessary if at least a share of a third straight conference title was going to remain a realistic goal. The players responded, and the Rams and Mustangs are now tied for first place after a 2-0 lightning-shortened victory in 5-1/2 innings in a game heard on KG98. Lightning moved in around 8:30 p.m. and after a 40 minute delay and no sign of the lightning stopping, the game was called official. A game is official if the home team is ahead after as few as 4-1/2 innings, but in this case, 5-1/2 innings were played. Both teams are 10-2 in the HOIAC while Greene County is 13-5 overall and PCM is 12-5.
Junior Marissa Promes allowed four hits, no walks, and recorded four strikeouts as she improved her pitching record to 12-3. Promes worked out of trouble in the first inning when the Mustangs had two of their hits and left the bases loaded. The only other serious threat was in the fifth when a single and an error with one out put runners at first and second, but a fly ball to right and a pop up to the shortstop ended the threat.
The Rams handed freshman Kayla Jennings the pitching loss. A bases loaded walk by Emma Saddoris in the second inning on a 3-2 pitch with two outs drove in the first run, and a one out double off the fence in left center field by Emily Christensen in the fifth gave the Rams an insurance run. Kayla Mobley was the only player in the game with more than one hit as she recorded a pair of singles and scored the second run. Hannah Onken, Sydney Koch, and Carleigh Paup also had base hits for the Rams, and Koch scored the first run of the game.
Greene County and PCM split their season series with each winning on their home diamond. The shut out was the fourth of the season for the Rams.
a long stretch of games, mainly on the road continues for Greene County. The Rams are scheduled for games today in the West Marshall Tournament at 1, 3, and 5 p.m. weather permitting. They play at Colfax on Monday vs. Colfax-Mingo in varsity only action at 7 p.m. Barring rain outs, the Rams will have played a stretch of 17 games, 15 away from home, before hosting South Hamilton (Jewell) on June 27.