Bobcats capture Riverhawks for the doubleheader sweep
It was Mason City that christened Marshalltown High School’s new softball scoreboard.
In the end, however, it was the Bobcats who scored more runs.
Marshalltown softball overcame a slow start with a fiery finish, rallying past Mason City 5-4 in the first game of Tuesday’s Iowa Alliance Conference North Division doubleheader at MHS. The second game was a bit more convincing of a Bobcat victory, 6-3, but it also revved up the rivalry.
Both teams were issued warnings by the umpiring crew during the fifth inning of Game 2, and cooler heads — and the Bobcats — prevailed.
“I think we played well after that, honestly,” MHS head coach Jason Bowers said after having to help his team regain its composure during the second game. “I thought — especially after that confrontation, me coming over, putting my foot down to be good children — they responded well.”
Marshalltown (15-18, 4-8) ran its win streak to five by claiming the first game on Senior Night, 5-4, overtaking the Riverhawks (6-18, 1-9) with two runs in the bottom of the seventh inning. Abby Janssen started the inning with a one-out single, and her courtesy runner Rayelle Brott moved up on consecutive singles by Marshalltown’s two seniors: Laney Danielson and Aubree Mundt.
With the bases loaded, Olivia Wise grounded back to the pitcher’s circle, and Lexi Payne got the force at home for the second out. Briley Danielson followed with a sky-high fly ball to shallow center field, where Mason City shortstop Brogan Evans was unable to make the game-ending catch.
Mundt reacted to the fly ball and originally retreated to second base before breaking for third and eventually home, scoring the game-winning run just ahead of center fielder Kylie Johnson’s throw to the plate.
“It was ‘Aubree, get your butt going!'” Bowers recalled.
“I just saw the ball go up and that’s my first reaction, I just don’t really think about the outs right away,” Mundt confessed. “I’m like ‘oh, I need to go tag’ and then I was like ‘oh, nevermind. We need to go.’
“Bowers is screaming ‘you gotta get down!’ so I’m rounding third as fast as I possibly could and just sliding in.”
It was a tough end for Mason City, which led 3-0 and 4-3 before giving way. Evans hit an RBI triple in the first inning and a two-run homer in the third to put the Riverhawks on top, and Johnson’s two-out double drove in the go-ahead run to break the 3-all tie in the sixth.
Marshalltown’s comeback was fueled by small-ball and Mason City errors. MHS got three runs in the fourth to tie after a leadoff walk to Mundt. Wise reached on an error, and Briley Danielson’s bunt single plated Mundt. Kaelyn Coleman was hit by an 0-2 pitch from Payne to load the bases, and Kamryn Price plated two runs with a bloop single down the left-field line.
Seven players had one hit each for the Bobcats in support of Briley Danielson, who scattered nine hits and three walks while striking out 10 for the win.
After an emotional ending to the first game saw Marshalltown prevail, the Bobcats jumped out to an early lead on the Riverhawks in the nightcap. Mason City cut its deficit to 3-2, but a brief dust-up at home plate reignited the embers that still held plenty of heat.
With runners on the corners, Evans uncorked a wild pitch to Briley Danielson that allowed her sister Laney to score ahead of a close play at the plate. In standing up, Laney incidentally forced Evans to lose her balance, allowing Wise to take third base behind the play.
A heated exchange ensued, and umpires eventually shut it down with warnings for both teams.
Wise later scored on an error on Brooklyn Smith’s grounder, and Wise drove in Laney with a two-out single in the sixth for added insurance.
“Obviously beating them is great, and we’ve got to go up there tomorrow night,” Bowers said. “It’s going to be interesting to see how we respond to a quick turnaround, and to travel there.”
Hanna Osgood held the Riverhawks in check in Game 2 for the win, allowing one earned run on eight hits and one walk while striking out four. Evans took the loss, allowing five earned runs on seven hits and seven total walks with six strikeouts.
Gianna Baune had two doubles and scored twice, Laney Danielson was 2-for-4 with two runs scored and Wise was 2-for-3 with an RBI and two runs scored. The trio accounted for six of Marshalltown’s seven hits, with Briley Danielson hitting an RBI single to give MHS a 3-0 lead in the third.
MHS made five errors behind Osgood, but didn’t let them hurt they way they have in the past.
“I told them I was proud of that,” Bowers said. “We had like maybe one snowball fight, but other than that we controlled the ball for the most part. And one thing didn’t lead into others.”
Last season, the road team swept each doubleheader. In 2023, the home team swept the conference twinbills.
“Usually we go back and forth with Mason City, so this was good,” said Laney Danielson.
