Railsplitters maintain Metro lead

By KELLY TERPSTRA, Courier sports writer

June 30, 2009 01:55 am

— OTTUMWA — Maybe the boom will be followed by a big blast, because on Monday night at Huston Field, there were no fireworks.
Save those for late Saturday at the Ottumwa Classic.
The fuse has yet to be lit to start the week for the Ottumwa softball squad and Hall of Fame head coach Frank Huston.
That lack of firepower and punch benefited the Des Moines Lincoln Railsplitters big time.
Lincoln came up with two huge victories on Monday night in a key CIML Metro tussle on the field christened with Huston’s namesake. With an opening game marathon 7-5, 11-inning victory — head coach Diana Repp’s squad looked for the sweep against the seventh-ranked Bulldogs (21-7).
That’s exactly what the Railsplitters (22-9) got as the squad from Polk County went home happy by stealing game two at Huston’s house, 4-3.
With the two victories, Lincoln is now two-and-a-half games in front of the Bulldogs for first place in the Metro. Lincoln’s conference mark stands at 12-2 while Ottumwa falls to 9-4. Des Moines East, ranked sixth, entered play on Monday with a 10-2 Metro standing.
Ottumwa hosts its pioneering classic on Fourth of July weekend in the coming days.
Repp, a 1987 Fairfield grad and all-state player, ranked these two victories right near the top in her four years in charge of the ’Rails. She sent Lincoln to state in 2007, the same year Ottumwa finished in third place up in Fort Dodge.
Courtney Trotter’s long fly ball off the extended glove of OHS eighth-grade centerfielder Sammy Garrett in the top of the 11th gave Lincoln a 6-5 lead. The Railsplitters would tack on an insurance run with a RBI groundout.
Repp talked about the impressive sweep, aided by nine Bulldog errors, five in the opener.
“It’s kind of huge,” said Diana Repp. “It does make that long trip back home a little bit better.”
Huston talked about his team’s sloppy play on defense.
“The last couple of weeks we’ve been winning a lot games when we’ve been a little loose on defense. But it hasn’t caused us to come up on the short end. But it did tonight,” said Huston.
Sam Claman earned the two wins inside the circle for Lincoln. She finished off the Bulldogs by not allowing a hit after taking over for game-two starter Leah Frette in the fourth.
Paige Schreiner’s blister of a single to left field with two outs in the bottom of the seventh couldn’t bring the winning run home from second in the opener.
“It’s a blazer right to the leftfielder. You have no chance,” said Huston.
Ottumwa tied the contest in the bottom of the eighth on a wild pitch and an RBI single by Megan Bix. Lincoln scored two runs in the top half of the frame.
Missy Staloch allowed 11 hits, as did Claman, in the start to the twinbill. Staloch allowed four earned runs and fanned eight.
Numerous scoring chances were squandered by both teams. Lincoln left 11 runners on base in the opener — Ottumwa nine.
Game two saw Ottumwa score three runs off Frette. But Lincoln scored two runs in the sixth, just one earned. Emily Tripp’s single was the go-ahead run as the ball was not fielded cleanly in right, allowing Kailie O’Conner to score all the way from first. O’Conner, Lincoln’s second baseman, netted six hits on the night. She also ripped an RBI triple in the second inning of the nightcap.
Claman closed out the night with a strikeout with OHS runners on first and second.
“Too many chances went by the wayside offensively and defensively,” said Huston.
Courtney Wagner pitched the nightcap and fanned five.
Schreiner produced four hits on the evening. Garrett ripped an RBI double in the second game and accumulated three hits overall.
Lincoln beat Ottumwa 10-1 in Polk County earlier this month. The Bulldogs returned the favor with a 4-2 win. To add more significance to the sweep, each team is in the same Class 4A regional postseason bracket.
East and Lincoln play this Thursday. Ottumwa plays at Des Moines Roosevelt on the same night.
Des Moines Lincoln 7, Ottumwa 5 (11 innings)
DML 000 021 020 02 — 7 11 0
OTT 100 020 020 00 — 5 11 5
Des Moines Lincoln battery — Sam Claman (W, 17-4) (11IP, 11H, 5R, 5ER, 7K, 3BB), Emily Tripp catching.
2B — Vanessa Shirley, Kailie O’Conner.
Hits — Shirley 2-6, Courtney Trotter 1-5, Amber Streyffeler 2-5, Kelsie Reeves 1-5, O’Conner 4-5, Chelsea Blaylock 1-3.
RBI — Trotter, O’Conner, Courtney Hopkins, Blaylock 2. Runs — Shirley, Courtney Ghee, Meagan Way, Streyffeler, Allison Sawyer, Reeves 2.
Ottumwa battery — Missy Staloch (L, 12-4) (11IP, 11H, 7R, 4ER, 8K, 2BB), Lindsey Evans catching.
2B — Evans, Liz Cason, Courtney Klyn.
Hits — Paige Schreiner 2-6, Courtney Heller 1-5, Evans 2-5, Cason 1-5, Megan Bix 1-5, Jessi Black 1-5, Klyn 2-4, Kelsey Luthi 1-3.
RBI — Heller 2, Evans, Bix. Runs — Schreiner 2, Amy Albertson, Hannah Fredrickson, Luthi.
Des Moines Lincoln 4, Ottumwa 3
DML 020 002 0 — 4 6 1
OTT 111 000 0 — 3 6 4
Des Moines Lincoln battery — Leah Frette (3IP, 6H, 3R, 2ER, 2K, 1BB), Claman (W, 18-4) (4IP, 4K, 4BB), Tripp catching.
2B — Trotter.
3B — O’Conner.
Hits — Shirley 1-4, Trotter 1-4, O’Conner 2-3, Tripp 2-3.
RBI — O’Conner 2, Tripp. Runs — Streyffeler, Sawyer, O’Conner 2.
Ottumwa battery — Courntey Wager (L, 7-3) (7IP, 6H, 4R, 2ER, 5K, 2BB), Natalie Droz catching.
2B — Sammy Garrett.
Hits — Schreiner 2-3, Garrett 2-3, Cason 1-2, Droz 1-3.
RBI — Schreiner, Garrett. Runs — Schreiner, Garrett, Bix.