‘The girls did a great job!’: Hawkettes rally past No. 8 Dowling for 11-9 road victory

Ankeny runner Kensington Arringdale heads back to first base during a game at Dowling Catholic on June 10. The game was suspended due to rain and lightning, then was resumed on Tuesday with Dowling holding a 4-2 lead in the third inning. Arringdale went 2-for-2 and drove in three runs as the Hawkettes rallied for an 11-9 victory. (Photo by Dan Holm)

The Ankeny softball team is setting some smaller goals in an effort to achieve some bigger things.

That approach paid off on Tuesday with a come-from-behind 11-9 victory at eighth-ranked Dowling Catholic.

“The girls were working for a BINGO, and this helps us to set small goals throughout the game and keep challenging each other,” said Ankeny coach Sarah Saladino. “That was their focus, and the bingo board has been a great addition to celebrating the small successes to keep confidence, positivity and also for us as a team to never stop competing as we always have a small goal we are trying to achieve.”

**Ankeny batter Morgan Fisher waits on a pitch from Dowling Catholic’s Grace Nagel during the game on June 10. Fisher had two hits and scored a run in the Hawkettes’ win. (Photo by Dan Holm)**

The game was resumed in the third inning after being suspended due to rain and lightning on June 10. Ankeny had just scored a run to cut Dowling’s lead to 4-2 when play was halted.

The Hawkettes immediately rallied for three more runs in the top of the third on Tuesday to take a 5-4 lead. They added three more in the fourth and another in the sixth to build a 9-4 advantage before Dowling answered with five runs in the bottom of the sixth to tie it.

Ankeny then responded with a two-run seventh to snap the Maroons’ four-game winning streak.

“The girls did a great job!” Saladino said. “We had been prepping the girls for the long week ahead. We knew the schedule, but we told the girls to only worry about the game we were getting prepared for. They offensively at the plate attacked early and stayed patient to their plan.”

**Ankeny catcher Kinsley Ihle looks for a sign during the game on June 10. (Photo by Dan Holm)**

Kensington Arringdale went 2-for-2 and drove in three runs, while Sarah Munger went 2-for-4 with a double and two RBIs. Brylee Bach also knocked in a pair of runs.

Avery Nelson went 3-for-4 with a triple and scored four times. Morgan Fisher and Reagan Hogan each had two hits and scored a run.

Sophie Schoeppner took over in the circle on Tuesday and tossed three scoreless innings before running into trouble in the sixth. Munger (4-1) relieved and earned the win, allowing no earned runs on two hits over the final 1 2/3 innings.

**Ankeny’s Emma Munger gets ready to throw a pitch during the game on June 10. She was one of four pitchers used by the Hawkettes in the game that was completed on Tuesday. (Photo by Dan Holm)**

“Sophie did great on the mound,” Saladino said. “We couldn’t have asked for a better performance from another young eighth grader with her first start, and Sarah complemented her well to finish the game.”

The Hawkettes moved within a half-game of Dowling for fifth place in the CIML Conference. They improved to 6-10 in the league and 10-14 overall, while the Maroons’ records fell to 6-9 and 14-9.

Ankeny will host a conference doubleheader against second-ranked Ankeny Centennial on Wednesday. The Jaguars are 14-1 in the league, 26-1 overall and riding a 19-game winning streak.

The Jaguars won the first meeting, 16-3, in four innings on June 1.