(Story by Stephen McDaniel)
Kori Lincicum left her fingerprints all over a pair of Jaguar victories against their crosstown rival.
The Ankeny Centennial junior walked off a 5-3 win with a two-run homer in the bottom of the ninth inning before tossing a four-hitter in an 8-0 shutout as the fourth-ranked Jaguars swept a doubleheader over visiting Ankeny on Wednesday.
“It felt pretty nice (to beat Ankeny),” said Lincicum. “I know a lot of those girls and I play with one of them, so it felt good to come out and beat them.”
Ankeny threatened to take the lead in the top of the ninth inning of the opener. The Hawkettes had freshman Morgan Fisher as the potential go-ahead run on third base with two outs.
Junior Avery Nelson then hit a drive toward the gap in left-center field, but Centennial junior Mady Ott made a diving catch to keep the game tied at 3-3.
In the bottom of the frame, Jordyn Kennedy reached on a one-out single to put the potential winning run on base. Lincicum then stepped in, swung at the first pitch from Aubrey Lensmeyer and blasted the ball well beyond the centerfield fence for her ninth homer of the season.
“I was watching the first pitch, and the first pitch was all middle and away,” Lincicum said. “So I decided I was going to get right up on that line and swing first pitch. I just wanted to get a barrel, and I wanted to get it into the outfield to hopefully push the runners over–and I did a little bit more than that.”
It took a few innings for Centennial’s bats to warm up. After Ava Faber crushed her first home run of the season in the first inning to give the Jaguars the lead, Sarah Munger quickly tied things up for the Hawkettes in the second as she drilled a leadoff double and came home on a pair of wild pitches.
Ankeny came back the next inning with a leadoff single from Nelson before Lensmeyer drove her in with a single. Autumn Leinen followed with an RBI single of her own to put the Hawkettes ahead, 3-1.
“I think every time we’ve played (Centennial) we’ve made adjustments,” said Ankeny coach Sarah Saladino. “Tonight, that was great softball. That first game we were neck-and-neck and went nine innings. I just told the kids every opportunity is a chance to get better. I’m super proud of their performance.”
Centennial found a sparkplug in freshman Peyten Spiegel during the fourth inning. She took over in the circle for Aubrey Scieszinski and proceeded to toss six scoreless innings the rest of the way.
Spiegel (6-1) allowed just two hits and racked up eight strikeouts.
“She has put in the work, and we knew we had a good one in Peyten,” said Centennial coach Brett Delaney. “We’re very fortunate for all the work she’s done not just during the season, but to lead up to this point of getting that opportunity to take those chances in the circle.”
Lincicum had an RBI single in the fifth to cut Ankeny’s lead to 3-2. Makenna Foster then tied it shortly thereafter with a two-out RBI double to right field.
That set the stage for Lincicum’s ninth-inning heroics before she took over in the circle for the nightcap.
Ankeny struggled to find any offense against Lincicum (5-4), who allowed just four hits and four walks while fanning six in the six-inning contest.
“Kori has grown up so much as a player these last few years,” Delaney said. “Her leadership with this team–whether it’s in the circle, up at the plate or in right field–is second to none. She’s a big piece of this component of hopefully a long postseason run for us.”
A double play powered by Faber in the fifth inning helped prevent the Hawkettes from breaking up the shutout.
Centennial didn’t share those same offensive struggles as it nearly matched its total of five runs from the opener in just the first inning alone of game two.
Kennedy recorded an RBI single, Lauren Bartine drew a bases-loaded walk, and Foster drove in a pair of runs on a grounder to give the Jaguars an early 4-0 lead.
Centennial added a couple more runs with a sacrifice fly by Kennedy in the second and another bases-loaded walk to Bartine in the fourth before walking it off in the sixth after Ott’s RBI single and Bartine’s run-scoring grounder. The Jaguars defeated Ankeny for the fourth time this season.
The sweep allowed Centennial to keep pace with No. 1 Waukee Northwest in the CIML Conference race. The Jaguars improved to 14-3 in the league and 22-7 overall, while Ankeny’s records fell to 5-13 and 9-17.
Centennial has won six straight games heading into Thursday’s showdown against visiting Northwest, which is 14-2 in the conference and riding a 17-game winning streak. The contest will be played at 10 a.m.
“We just have to keep working,” Lincicum said. “Our motto this year is ‘As One’, and I think we just need to keep working as one to keep this team going.”
The Hawkettes, meanwhile, will try to regroup as they host a conference game against No. 6 Southeast Polk.
“Our biggest thing is just to continue to get better,” Saladino said. “Down the run is when you want to peak. We’ve had games not always go our way, but I think we’re really playing some tough softball down the run and that’s what you want.”
