After pulling off a miraculous 11-9 victory in the opener of Wednesday’s doubleheader at 13th-ranked Waukee, the No. 2 Ankeny Centennial softball team used that momentum to cruise to an 11-0 win in six innings in the nightcap.
The sweep allowed the Jaguars to extend their winning streak to 13 games while moving into sole possession of first place in the CIML Conference.
“That was a true team win versus a really good Waukee team,” said Centennial coach Brett Delaney, whose squad is now 12-1 in the league and 20-1 overall. “The energy in the dugout never wavered. It might have been the loudest dugout in my coaching career. All 24 believed in each other!”
Centennial was just three outs away from suffering its first mercy rule loss since last year, when the Jaguars dropped an 11-3 decision to Waukee Northwest in five innings in the Class 5A semifinals.
Trailing 9-1 in the fifth inning, Centennial stayed alive when Mylie Hatfield hit a two-run homer, her ninth of the season.
“Everybody in our dugout knew we could (come back),” said Hatfield, who started the game in the pitcher’s circle but was knocked out in the second inning. “We all had that confidence, and we all got up to do our stuff and knew what we could do. And once we know we’re in the game, we’re going to keep going. We just have to push and fight even harder at that point.”
The Jaguars scored five runs in the sixth to close the gap to 9-8. Jordyn Kennedy hit a two-run double, Hatfield had an RBI single, and Delaney Wyble added a two-run single–all with no outs.
Centennial still had runners at second and third, but Waukee got out of the jam by retiring the next two batters on popups. The second one off the bat of Emmy Ott resulted in an inning-ending double play when Wyble was doubled off second.
However, Wyble returned the favor in the bottom of the inning. The Warriors had a runner at first with one out when Ella Daniel, who had hit a two-run homer earlier in the game, lined out to the Centennial first baseman–who caught the ball as she was standing on the bag for another inning-ending double play.
In the seventh, Centennial tied the game when Lauren Bartine led off with a solo homer just inside the left-field foul pole. It was her second homer of the season.
“I did not think it was going to be out,” said Bartine. “I thought I was just completely way too early (on the swing). I don’t know if the wind helped or not, but I’m glad if it did.”
Kori Lincicum blooped a double to right and was bunted to third by Ava Faber. Kennedy then blasted a two-run homer to complete the comeback.
“Once we had all that courage, coach Delaney even said it in our dugout, ‘We were as loud as could be,'” Hatfield said. “We had all the energy at that point.”
Peyten Spiegel (7-0) earned the win in relief. She allowed no hits and had four strikeouts over the final two innings.
Waukee, which had handed No. 1 Waukee Northwest its only loss on June 3, could not help its crosstown rival by knocking off the Jaguars. The Wolves are now second in the conference at 11-1, while the Warriors’ records dropped to 6-7 and 9-8.
“I definitely thought we could come back,” said Bartine, who went 3-for-3 in the win. “We’ve come back from worse in past seasons, and all 24 of us came together and put all of our energy into it.”
Hatfield went 3-for-5 for Centennial. Lincicum went 2-for-4 and scored a pair of runs, while Kennedy and Wyble each went 2-for-5.
In the nightcap, Lauren Sandholm (7-0) tossed a two-hitter and had five strikeouts to remain unbeaten. She also went 2-for-3 and drove in a run.
Lincicum went 3-for-4 and knocked in two runs. Lydia Lacey doubled and had two RBIs, while Faber also drove in two runs.
Kennedy added a solo homer, her ninth in the last eight games and her 14th of the season. She continues to trail Kyla Schulte of Clear Creek Amana by one homer for the state lead.
Kennedy now has 63 career homers, putting her eight shy of Kendyl Lindaman’s all-time state record. The Jaguars have hit 51 blasts, putting them 10 away from the state record of 61 that was set by Pleasant Valley in 2024.
Centennial will play another conference game at Johnston on Thursday. The Dragons are 4-8 in the league and 9-10 overall after earning a sweep at Ankeny on Wednesday to extend their winning streak to five games.
