HOWARD LAKE – There’s no better way to get ready for the postseason than to face one of the top teams in your conference who happens to be one of the top teams in Class A. That’s just what the Howard Lake-Waverly-Winsted softball team did as they battled No. 4 in Class A Kimball in a 15-5 loss to close out the regular season.
While the Lakers knew it was a tough task at hand, that didn’t stop them from giving the Cubs all they had despite trailing 15-2 heading to their final chance. Even down 13 runs, the Lakers never rolled over as they rallied for three runs in the bottom of the seventh inning and left the bases loaded.
HLWW’s Lanney Loebertmann puts the tag on Kimball’s Mackenzie Leither for a big out in the third inning. Loebertmann also went 2-for-3 at the plate with a two-run home run to get the Lakers on the board.
“They definitely didn’t give up,” HLWW coach Carol Meyerson said. “We had a few more opportunities on defense to make the plays, but it didn’t happen. We did pick it up for our pitcher though in the late innings.”
The no quit that Meyerson saw in her team despite the lopsided score is something she hoped she would see against the highly-ranked Cubs. With playoffs around the corner next week, Meyerson knows how important a short memory and energy throughout is important come playoffs, especially in a pitcher.
“For playoffs, we have to take it inning by inning,” Meyerson said. “We don’t know how it’s going to go. Both teams are going to want to win. Both teams are going to be there to fight. We have to go batter by batter, and inning by inning, and get all those outs that we can.”
Senior pitcher Hailey Wiegert did just that for the Lakers against the Cubs. After giving up two runs in the first inning, she bounced right back, posting a scoreless inning in the second against a deep and talented Cubs lineup. In the third inning, Wiegert allowed two more runs, but once again came back strong posting another zero in the fourth inning in which she struck out the first two batters she faced. That’s the kind of toughness and mentality Meyerson wants to see from her team heading into the Section 5AA tournament.
Lanney Loebertmann led the charge for the Lakers on offense. She went 2-for-3 with a walk, and a two-run home run that brought the Lakers within two runs in the bottom of the third inning. Alexis Decker also continued to swing a hot bat for the Lakers. She went 2-for-3 with two doubles and a run scored as she has continued to be a steady bat for the Lakers in the middle of the lineup this season.
“She’s been hitting really well,” Meyerson said. “She’s hitting in clutch times. She can get us started in the beginning of an inning, or when she’s got a baserunner on, she gets that RBI. That’s been really clutch for us having someone in the middle of the lineup that’s able to handle that pressure.”
For more photos of the HLWW softball team in their game against Kimball, click here.
Look for the rest of the story, as well as more HJ sports coverage, in the Friday, May 18 edition of the Herald Journal. Click here for subscription information.
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