March 28, 2024

Home Comes State Softball Hardware

Newton Cardinals make history, take 3rd in Class 4A

FORT DODGE — History was made Friday by Newton High’s Cardinal softball team at Harlan Rodgers Park. State tournament hardware was carried off by the Cardinals.

Three Cardinal seniors put the finishing touches on a dramatic come-from-behind victory to secure the third-place trophy in Class 4A at the 2018 Iowa Girls’ High School State Softball Championships. It is the highest finish in three state tournament appearances by the Newton High softball program.

“We just wanted to get people on base and move them around. We knew were were worth getting third place. Coach (Price) said ‘why not us,’” senior Karley Leiker said following the 7-6 extra-inning win.

After erasing a 6-1 deficit against Sergeant Bluff-Luton Warriors with four runs in the sixth inning and a run in the bottom of the seventh as time was running out. Consolation games at the state softball tournament have a 90-minute time limit. Tie games go to the international tiebreaker — teams begin innings with a runner at second base.

Newton and SB-L moved to the eighth inning with the Warriors unable to move their runner around. The Cardinals came to bat in the bottom of the inning.

Senior Audrey Lucas was at second base. Senior Harlie Durr laid down a sacrifice bunt to move Lucas to third base. Then came senior Mackenize Johnson, who delivered her second career home run — a three-run shot — in the sixth inning of the game.

“I knew she was going to have the first girls bunt to get me to third — you know small ball,” Lucas said. “I knew when Mackenzie got up to bat she’s get the job done. I have confidence in her and she got the push bunt down the first baseline that scored me.”

Johnson pushed a bunt through the gap between the Warriors’ pitcher and first baseman for the game-winning hit as Lucas ran home for the winning run. Newton closed its 2018 historic run with a 7-6 walk-off win in eight innings on Harlan Rogers Park Diamond No. 2.

“Wow, it feels amazing,” Johnson said. “Our team really wanted to win this game. We were down in the first couple of innings than we came back strong like we always have this season. Not one person wins a game. It wasn’t just me. Everyone wins it as a team and I’m happy to be able to help my team win.”

Junior Peyton Maher pitched her third complete game at the state tournament, going 2-1 in the circle for the Cardinals. Maher racked up 10 strikeouts while giving up seven hits to the Warriors and issuing two walks.

“We settled down. Peyton settled down in there an threw a great game,” Newton head coach Casey Price said. “Right down to the end when we needed her to she got clutch, clutch strikeouts. I knew we could come back and get this. The girls just don’t give up.”

Sergeant Bluff-Luton took advantage of back-to-back Newton errors to open the game and score a run. The Warriors led 3-0 after their first at-bat.

The Cardinals appeared ready to get on the scoreboard in their half of the first inning. Junior shortstop Emily Valtman led off with a rope down the first-base line for a single then Karley Leiker, who plays center field, singled.

Unfortunately, Valtman was called out for interference on a groundout by senior first baseman Taylor Ryan. With two gone, Maher grounded out.

Maher and the Cardinals sat down the Warriors in order in the second. Newton had a base runner with one out in the second but couldn’t score.

The Cardinals finally got on the scoreboard in the third inning. Senior catcher Kennedy Leiker singled to left field and junior Lakin Jenkins went in as a courtesy runner. Valtman doubled and Karley Leiker hit an RBI single. Valtman was tagged out in a rundown then the Warriors retired the next two batters.

SB-L used a hit batter and a Newton error to start another three-run inning in the fourth. With two gone, the Warriors’ Emma Christensen singled in one run then Chloe Black doubled to drive in two more runs.

Down 6-1, the Cardinals began the bottom of the fourth on a bunt single by junior third baseman Mackensie Brown, who moved to second on a passed ball. Lucas reached on a fielder’s choice and an error allowed the runners to move up.

Senior left fielder Harlie Durr had an infield single then the Warriors pulled off a double play. Newton’s Brown and Lucas were tagged out in rundowns on the play. Johnson singled then was thrown out trying to take second on the play.

In the fifth inning, Price made a couple of defensive changes. She moved Brown from third base to right field replacing junior Madison Thayer. Lucas took over at third base.

Newton still faced a five-run deficit as it went to bat in the sixth inning. Ryan singled and Maher drew a walk, which put eighth-grader Kya Butler on base as a courtesy runner. Brown worked a base-on-balls to fill the bases.

Lucas had an RBI single, but Butler was picked off at third base and Durr struck out. There were two on and two out when Johnson stepped to the plate. One pitch and Newton was back in the ball game.

“It felt good. It was right down the middle and I knew it was going as soon as I hit it,” Johnson said of her first home run of the season to make it 6-5.

But time was ticking off the game clock. SB-L got a one-out single by Kinzey Foley in the top of the seventh. Lucas threw out Cassidy Kascht on a sacrifice bunt then collected a grounder to third and threw to Ryan at first to retire the side.

Valtman led off with a base hit to center field followed by a single by Karley Leiker. Ryan was safe on a fielder’s choice as the Warriors went to third to get the force out of Valtman. Maher put down a sacrifice bunt to move the runners.

Brown hits a slap bunt and the Warriors attempted to throw home to cut down Karley Leiker from scoring. The throw was late and Leiker scored the tying run. Lucas was ruled out for interference to end the inning.

Maher struck out two and got a popup for a quick 1-2-3 top of the eighth leaving Abby Lewis at second base. Then came the dramatic ending for the Cardinals.

Valtman and Brown were named to the 2018 Class 4A All-Tournament team selected by the Iowa Girls Coaches Association. Newton hadn’t been to a state tournament since 1986, which was a fall tournament, and 1983, when it took fourth at the summer tournament.

Read more on the game and reactions to a 26-8 season which ended in a third-place finish at the state tournament by the Cardinals in Monday’s Newton Daily News.