Beatrice, NE—The Marshalltown Community College softball team pitched a pair of shutouts on Saturday afternoon as the offense scored 22 runs to improve to 17-11 on the year. The Tigers held off Northeastern Junior College (CO) 4-0 before routing Southeast Community College 18-0.
Sarah Wilson (Ottumwa, IA/Ottumwa) struck out 12 batters in the complete game shutout to give the Tigers their first victory of the day. MCC jumped out to a 10-0 lead against Southeast before sophomore Brooke Dunkin (Bussey, IA/Twin Cedars) connected on her first career home run, a grand slam to put the game away. Brianna James (Lynnville, IA/Lynnville-Sully) got the win and teamed up with Mackenzie Gott (Oskaloosa, IA/Oskaloosa) for the two-hit shutout. The two pitchers struck out five batters apiece.
Between the two games, MCC belted 33 hits on the day. Emmeline Huffaker (Baxter, IA/Baxter) went a combined 6-7 on the afternoon and scored three runs. Lexie Biehl (Maquoketa, IA/Maquoketa) recorded four hits to up her conference-leading batting average to .558 on the year.
Dunkin and Biehl both scored in the initial inning in game one to get the Tigers up early. Wilson kept the opposing lineup off the base paths, allowing just one runner to reach base through the first six innings. McKenna Hotopp (State Center, IA/West Marshall) and Shaiann Treu (Waianae, HI/Nanakuli) both singled and scored in the sixth for a pair of insurance runs as Wilson finished off the game with three strikeouts in the seventh.
Wilson has struck out double-digit batters four times this year. The 12 strikeouts are one off of her carer-high.
Taking on Southeast for the fourth time this year, and second in as many days, the Tigers had little trouble scoring crossing the plate. After a scoreless first inning, MCC hung four runs in the second, one in the third, and five in the fourth. Dunkin's fifth inning grand slam led to eight runs in the frame for the Tigers. MCC has outscored the Storm 48-3 in the four meetings.
Gott and Huffaker each recorded four-hit games for the Tigers in the rout. Hotopp picked up three hits as well while Whitney Baker (Nevada, IA/Nevada) and Kyndal Milder (Columbus Junction, IA/Columbus) drove in three runs each.
The Tigers return to Iowa Community College Athletic Conference (ICCAC) play tomorrow afternoon with a doubleheader at Kirkwood Community College.
