ELY- Everything was clicking for the North Woods softball team last week as the Grizzlies rolled over the Ely Timberwolves 16-1 on Thursday in Ely.
North Woods never trailed in the game, grabbing a one-run lead in the first and adding a pair of runs in the third.
The sixth inning was Ely’s undoing, as the Grizzlies plated 12 runs against an erratic Amelia Penke, getting her first start for the Wolves. North Woods batters either waited out Penke for walks or hammered hits through gaps in the Ely defense. Up until the sixth Penke had been able to keep the game close, giving up just four runs through five.
What Penke needed but didn’t get was run support. Grizzlies pitcher Helen Koch was backed up by strong defensive play across the board as she limited the Wolves to only three hits and one run. The Wolves had opportunities but left runners on base in scoring position.
The Grizzlies showed their liveliest bats of the season with ten hits and displayed good discipline at the plate by drawing 15 walks. Nevada Gauthier, Karah Scofiled, and Avery Thiel each had two-hit games.
North Woods Coach Dee Ann Sandberg was pleased to see her team come around after starting the season with a shuffled lineup due to three anticipated returning veterans choosing to sit out this year.
“It’s a little different team than we’ve had lately,” Sandberg said. “But the more we get to play outside the better it gets. Practicing in the gym was just a rat race, and we haven’t had a batting cage and pitching machine the whole season They’re excited to hit.”
And despite the unanticipated absences, the Grizzlies have a core group of players who have developed an expectation of winning every time they step on the field, That’s a bonus, Sandberg said.
“That’s what we try to drill into everyone all the time, that they should want that,” she said. “I think it helps the younger ones want to play harder, seeing some of the older ones play.”
Ely Head Coach Cory Lassi said it seemed like his team “just ran out of steam.”
“We only had three hits, but I felt like we hit the ball hard,” he said.
Lassi had good things to say about Penke’s performance on the mound through the first five innings.
“She battled out of some jams early in the game,” he said.