North Gets First Win as Statesmen Split Pair of One-Run Games on Opening Day

Sioux Center--The William Penn softball team entered the win column on the first day of the 2024 season as it started the campaign with a pair of tight contests in a dome tournament hosted by Dordt Friday.

In Laura North's WPU head coaching debut, the Statesmen (1-1) defeated Doane 1-0, but then fell to #15 Northwestern 3-2 in eight innings.

WPU 1, Doane 0

Despite outhitting the Tigers 7-1, the navy and gold were unable to get their first and only run across until late in the game.

Chelsey Huff (Jr., Douds, Iowa, Exercise Science) tossed a gem, holding down the opposition, while the William Penn offense managed a baserunner in each of the first five frames, but could not bring anyone around.

The Statesmen finally broke through in the sixth inning as Laila Smith (Fr., Olympia, Wash., Elementary Education) doubled to center field with one out. She advanced to third on a groundout and Peyton Naranjo (Fr., Ripon, Calif., Biology) stepped up with a big two-out base knock, bringing her home with a single to center field.

Huff then closed out the complete game with help from her defense. A one-out hit-by-pitch put the tying run on base, but Charley Geguzis (Sr., Williamsburg, Iowa, Business Management) fielded the next hit, flipped it to Nayely Martinez (Sr., Carson, Calif., Business Management) at second base, and she then fired over to Brianna Talamantes (Jr., San Pedro, Calif., Secondary Education) at first for the game-ending double play.

Abby Wilson (Sr., Calgary, Alberta, Nursing) paced the offense with a 2-for-3 outing. Five others tallied one hit, including Geguzis, who also walked once in the victory.

Huff earned the win in dominating fashion, allowing just one hit in the shutout, while striking out six. She worked around two WPU errors as well.

Northwestern 3, WPU 2

The Statesmen also bettered a ranked Red Raiders squad in hitting with a 9-4 advantage, but could not get over the hump for the upset.

The sides were scoreless through the first three and a half innings, but Northwestern snapped the tie with a run in the bottom of the fourth. WPU eventually answered NWC with a run in the sixth as Hannah Gibson (Jr., Pleasantville, Iowa, Elementary Education) produced a one-out single to right field.

Zoey Jones (Sr., Ottumwa, Iowa, Elementary Education) then pinch-ran for Gibson and stole second before being advanced to third on a one-bagger by Naranjo. The senior finally touched home plate when she tagged up on a Crystal Warren (Las Vegas, Nev., Secondary Education) fly ball to center field.

The Red Raiders unfortunately took the lead right back, but the Statesmen stayed alive in the seventh. Wilson, who once again topped the navy gold offensively (3-for-4), reached base on a single and then scored two batters later on a double to right field off the bat of Laila Smith.

Extra innings ensued and since the game was part of a tournament, the international tiebreaker rule was implemented and each team started with a runner at second base in its half of the inning. Unfortunately, while the Statesmen failed to do anything, Northwestern did take advantage in the bottom half to walk off as winners.

Martinez complemented Wilson's offense with a 2-for-4 performance, while three others also had hits. Wilson recorded a stolen base in each of Friday's games, while William Penn had a baserunner in all but one of the frames against NWC.

WPU employed a pair of effective hurlers against its opponent. Starter Tori Smith (Fr., Olympia, Wash., Secondary Education) was strong in five innings, giving up just two runs on three hits, while striking out two and walking two. Emily Bryant (Sr., University Place, Wash., Nursing), who entered in relief and was saddled with the loss, worked 2 1/3 frames and permitted one run on one hit. The senior struck out one batter and walked one as well.

"We had a really good first day," Head Coach Laura North said. "As we expected, our pitching and defense were excellent. We also outhit both of our opponents and had runners on base in nearly every inning. I am super proud of our preparedness and competitiveness. The runs will come. A lot of different players stepped up and it was a full team effort."

Next Up: William Penn remains at the Dordt Tournament Saturday, facing Midland at 10 a.m. and host Dordt at noon.