The Ankeny softball team fell below the .500 mark for the first time since its season opener on Monday, dropping a 4-2 decision to visiting Indianola for its sixth consecutive loss.
The eighth-ranked Hawkettes slipped to 19-20 on the season. Indianola raised its record to 19-17.
“Softball is a tough sport, and we’re feeling it,” said Ankeny coach Dave Bingham. “But we’ve been in every game, and they come down to the end.”
After being swept by top-ranked Valley on July 1, Ankeny then lost three more games to rated opponents at the Carlisle tournament on Friday and Saturday. Two of those losses came by one run to Class 4A schools–a 4-3 decision to No. 9 Carlisle and a 2-1 defeat to No. 11 Bondurant-Farrar.
Abby Rusher racked up nine strikeouts and had a double against Bondurant-Farrar. Rusher (12-10) got the start again on Monday, but was replaced by Aubrey Lensmeyer after Indianola used a three-run fourth inning to erase the Hawkettes’ 1-0 lead.
Katie Fosenburg and Kyra Robins each had a home run for the Indians, while Tessa Gripp went 2-for-4 with a double and scored a run.
“Lensmeyer came in, and she was lights out,” Bingham said. “She really closed the door. That was the highlight of the night.”
Lensmeyer allowed just one unearned run on one hit over the last three innings. She also went 2-for-3 at the plate.
Indianola’s Ava Tichy scattered seven hits to earn the win. She allowed no earned runs and had two strikeouts.
Trailing 4-1, Ankeny tried to rally in the seventh inning. Josie Parton hit a one-out single and advanced to second on a grounder.
Parton went to third on a single by Cassie Johnson, who was 2-for-4 on the night. Parton then scored when Avery Nelson reached on an infield single, but the game ended when courtesy runner Lauren Fisher was thrown out trying to advance to third.
“We have tons of fight, and we had a chance to win it,” Bingham said. “But things just didn’t go our way. We had a couple of baserunning things that I need to work on.”
Ankeny will host Iowa City High (14-22) or Waterloo West (11-20) in a Class 5A regional semifinal on Saturday.
“We just need to keep going,” Bingham said. “I really like this team, and if you can catch fire, who knows what can happen? We just have to hit the ball better.”
