March 28, 2024

Area players, coach earn IGCA All-District softball honors

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Seven area players received the first of several postseason honors expected to be announced this week and next week in high school softball and baseball.

The Iowa Girls Coaches Association released its All-District softball teams July 17.

Newton High’s junior Sydney Jenkins earned IGCA Class 4A All-Southeast District team honors for the third year in a row.

Collins-Maxwell/Baxter sophomore Abbey Kahler was named to the Class 2A All-Northeast District team. Prairie City-Monroe’s seniors Molly Vignovich and Rachel Freland earned Class 3A All-Central honors.

Lynnville-Sully’s senior Madison Rasmusson, junior Kasiah Ehresman and senior Lysandra James were named to the Class 1A All-South Central District team. Hawk head coach Stacey Alberts was named the All-South Central District coach of the year.

Jenkins led the Cardinals in all offensive categories during the 2015 season. She led the team in hitting for the third straight season with a .500 batting average. She owned a .830 slugging percentage and a .597 on-base percentage.

As Newton’s leadoff hitter for most of the season, Jenkins was 20 of 22 on stolen base attempts. She drew 21 walks and was hit by pitches three times. She only struck out eight times. Jenkins had 50 hits, which included eight doubles, five triples and five home runs. She drove in 29 runs and scored 37 runs.

Jenkins switched from catcher to shortstop this season. She had a .882 fielding percentage. She had 15 errors on 127 fielding chances with 49 putouts and 63 assists.

Lynnville-Sully was 33-3 during the regular season and playoffs. The individual statistics given here do not include the teams’ three games in the 2015 Class 1A state softball tournament.

Rasmusson has been the Hawks’ pitching ace for three years. She went 31-3 in the regular season with a 1.09 ERA, which was third best among state tournament pitchers. Rasmusson only issued five walks in 211 1/3 innings of work this season. She has 153 strikeouts. Her fielding percentage was .945 with seven errors.

During the season, Rasmusson posted a .512 batting average, which was second best on the team. She led Lynnville-Sully with a .777 slugging percentage and had a .535 on-base percentage.

She had 62 hits, including four doubles, five triples and six home runs. Rasmusson drove in a team-high 46 runs, while scoring 44. She was 46 of 50 on stolen base opportunities.

Ehresman, Lynnville-Sully’s second baseman, was the team’s leader at the plate with a .548 batting average. The Hawks’ leadoff hitter had an on-base average of .609 for the regular season and a slugging percentage of .557.

Ehresman had 63 hits — one double — and scored 55 runs to lead the team. She had eight RBIs. She went 54 of 55 on stolen base attempts. On defense, Ehresman had a .894 fielding percentage and nine errors at second base.

James powered out six home runs and delivered eight doubles in the regular season. She had a .362 batting average with 31 RBIs. Her slugging percentage as the team’s clean-up hitter was .743. She had 42 hits and scored 21 runs.

As the Hawks’ center fielder, James had a perfect fielding percentage. She had 27 putouts and three assists on 30 chances.

Alberts guided Lynnville-Sully to its sixth straight South Iowa Cedar League championship with a third straight 20-0 conference run. Alberts is in her 10th year as Hawk head coach and the team has a 75-game winning streak in conference. Lynnville-Sully has been to 1A state five out of the past six years, just claimed its third straight fifth-place trophy at this week’s 2015 tournament.

Both CMB and PCM advanced to regional finals this season. And both squads were rewarded with all-district selections.

CMB’s Kahler (18-12) was the Raiders’ No. 1 pitcher. She was second in the Heart of Iowa Conference and ninth in all of 2A in strikeouts with 191 and she did that in 197 2/3 innings. Her season earned run average was 1.70, she walked only 33 batters and opponents hit .214 against her.

Kahler led the Raiders with a .337 batting average. She was first or second in five other categories, leading the team with 11 doubles and coming in second in home runs (4), RBIs (16), hits (32) and on base percentage (.406).

CMB finished 20-14 and was ranked 13th at season’s end. The Raiders’ season ended with a 5-1 loss to No. 10 Iowa City Regina in the regional finals.

PCM’s Freland went 16-9 in the circle and ranked third in the HOIC with 129 strikeouts in 161 innings. Her earned run average was 2.87 and opponents hit .174 against her. She also walked 54. Freland did not bat but scored four times as a pinch runner.

Vignovich was PCM’s top hitter at .364. She was second in OBP at .427, tied for third in RBIs with 17 and fourth in runs with 24.

The Mustangs finished 23-11. They lost 5-1 to No. 1 Solon in the regional finals.

Contact Jocelyn Sheets at
641-792-3121 ext. 6535
or jsheets@newtondailynews.com