The 15th-ranked Ankeny softball team is one of the hottest squads in the state.
The Hawkettes extended their winning streak to eight games with two more victories on Saturday in the John Stevens Classic at Creston. They posted a 4-3 win over Mount Ayr, then followed with a 5-3 triumph over Knoxville–the No. 10 team in Class 4A.
Ankeny, which also won two games at the tournament on Friday, is now 11-4 on the season.
“We’re on a roll,” said Ankeny coach Dave Bingham. “There’s a maturity level that has happened. We didn’t really start off that way, but they’ve really galvanized. We’ve found a way to do a lot of the little things well. The Creston tournament was something else, because I thought every team we played was pretty good.”
Mariah Parton went 2-for-3 in both games on Saturday to raise her average to .478. She stole four bases and scored three runs against Mount Ayr (7-3), then had a triple and one RBI in the win over Knoxville (7-3).
Ashtyn Billings, another senior, also had a big day at the plate and is now batting a team-best .513. She doubled and drove in three runs against Knoxville after going 2-for-3 with a double and one RBI in the win over Mount Ayr.
“Those are two really solid teams that we beat,” Bingham said. “I thought our seniors got us ready to play.”
Kendra Winfrey knocked in two runs for the Hawkettes against Mount Ayr. Rylee Riesberg doubled and had one RBI, while Kennedy Palmer had a triple.
Billings (4-2) tossed a seven-hitter to earn the win. She allowed two earned runs and had nine strikeouts.
“Ash just grinded it out, and Rylee had a big hit late the game from the No. 9 hole,” Bingham said. “That was huge.”
Freshman Aubrey Lensmeyer (1-0) was the winning pitcher against Knoxville in her first varsity start. She allowed one earned run on five hits over the first three innings and had seven strikeouts.
“Aubrey did a great job,” Bingham said. “But after she gave up a homer, we had to have the big lefty (Winfrey) come in to finish it.”
Eva Fulk went 2-for-3 with a triple and scored two runs. Palmer went 2-for-3.
“Our mindset has been to get a run an inning–we’re just hunting runs every inning,” Bingham said. “I think we went down 1-2-3 maybe one time all weekend. The girls are having quality at-bats and getting comfortable.
“And to beat Creston 15-0 (on Friday) was an eye opener for us. We’ve got something special,” he added.
The Hawkettes will play a CIML Iowa Conference doubleheader on Monday at No. 4 Fort Dodge (11-3), the defending Class 5A state champion.
“The sky’s the limit for this team,” Bingham said. “And I really do believe we have our best games ahead of us. If we can be routine, we’re going to be scary. Because we’re not giving up very many runs.”
