PHS Softball
Bluejays Bat Up at Mid-State Softball
By Grace Retzlaff
The Bluejays went up against three teams Saturday, September 27, in West Point at the Mid-State conference softball tournament hosted by Guardian Angels Central Catholic.
Pierce played games against Wayne, O’Neill, and Ponca.
In the first game of the day, Pierce lost 10-2 against Wayne. Savannah Beutler had two runs batted in (RBIs) for Pierce.
Following the first game, Pierce went on to the next game against O’Neill. Pierce lost again to O’Neill, with the final score being 8-0.
Kaelyn Halsey was the pitcher, and she made four strikeouts in the four inning game. Evelyn Skrdla had one stolen base during the game.
“Against Wayne and O’Neill, there are still a few areas we all need to work on as a team with subdistricts coming up,” Beutler states. “I’m glad we beat Ponca; we needed a win to boost the team's attitudes.”
In the final game of the tournament, Pierce swept Ponca with a score of 11-0.
Halsey hit a double for the Jays.
“I think we played well throughout the game and brought more energy to the game, which we needed,” senior Kylie Dvorak states. “We also fixed the errors we’ve been needing to work on.”
The Bluejays tried their hardest this weekend and will soon be headed off to subdistricts.
The Pierce Bluejays Lose Twice At Logan View Softball Triangular
By Brody Knox
Thursday, September 25, the Bluejays traveled to Ponca to face Logan View/Scribner-Synder and Ponca for a softball triangular. The teams that played in the Triangular include the Ponca Indians, LV/SS Raiders, and the Pierce Bluejays. Unfortunately, Pierce was unable to bring home any wins from the tri, losing to both the Indians and the Raiders.
The first game Pierce played was against the Raiders. In the first inning, the Raiders made four runs, while the Bluejays made two.
In the second inning, Logan View scored one run while holding Pierce back from scoring any; however, in the third inning, Pierce turned the tables, scoring one run while holding the Raiders back from making any.
In the fourth inning, both teams fought hard to keep each other from making runs, finishing the inning with zero runs being made.
During the fifth inning, Logan View scored three runs with Pierce sneaking two.
Finishing the game during the sixth inning, both teams were unable to score any runs again. The final score of the match was Logan View/Scribner-Snyder 8–Pierce 5.
“I think we probably could have won. We just had some defensive errors as a whole, and we couldn’t really get our bats going,” freshman Eleanor Bauermeister comments.
Pitcher Kaelyn Halsey amassed eight strikeouts in the game.
Athena Bretschneider smacked a home run for Pierce, and also hit a double. Jessa Kraft added a triple and Savannah Beutler a double.
The second game Pierce played was against the Indians. In the first inning, Ponca scored one run, keeping Pierce from scoring any.
In the second and third innings, both teams battled hard, preventing each other from scoring any runs.
In the fourth inning, the Indians scored another two runs, while the Bluejays could not make any.
Repeating the second and third innings, in the fifth inning both teams did not score.
Finishing the match in the sixth inning, both teams, the Bluejays and the Indians, scored one run, bringing the score up to 4-1.
“I feel as if our practice the day before was definitely a decent one. But game-wise, we did well. Our attitudes were good, we were hitting well, and there were a couple of mistakes in our fielding that we definitely could improve on. But overall, we did well,” Beutler, a senior, states.
Beutler and Evelyn Skrdla both hit doubles for the Bluejays.
For the games, please support the Pierce Bluejays by attending and cheering them on.
The Bluejays Fall to The Titans
By Rylee Altwine
Playing at home, the Pierce softball team faced Twin River on Tuesday, September 23.
Coming into this game the Bluejays had a record of 8-14 while the Titans had a record of 13-9. Swinging into the game the Bluejays knew Twin River would be a tough opponent but they stepped up the home plate with a positive attitude.
“I pitched very well against Twin River. The one thing that kept us from scoring runs was our batting,” senior Kylie Dvorak states.
In the first inning the Bluejays started off hot, scoring three runs and only allowing the Titans to score one.
Making a comeback in the second inning, Twin River stepped on home plate five times not allowing the Bluejays to get near home. At the top of the third inning the score was 6-3, Bluejays trailing.
Playing great defense in the third, both teams protected home, not letting a single runner come home.
Sliding into the fourth inning, the Bluejays let the Titans get away with four runs while Twin River put a stop to Pierce scoring.
To end the game in the fifth inning, Twin River added another run to the scoreboard, dominating Pierce on home territory with a final score of 11-3.
“In the Twin River game, we did not make as many errors, but we need to work on the little things and build from there. I need to work on my pop time, but I performed well in the batter's box,” junior Jessa Kraft states.
