Cyclones Finish with 21-Win Season, Defeated in District Finals
By: Sydney Reeves, a junior at Leigh High School
As the Highway 91 Cyclones were nearing the end of the season, they came into sub-districts on Monday, October 4, ready to continue their season and see how far they could make it. The Cyclones were fortunate enough to be able to host sub-districts on their home field in Leigh this year due to having the top record in their subdistrict.
Highway 91 started their day off playing Centennial. This was a game of all or nothing, and the Cyclones were not ready to end their season. The Cyclones played a great game, defeating Centennial in four innings with a score of 11-0.
The second game of the day the Cyclones played against Fairbury/Thayer Central. Highway 91 managed to get a lead against Fairbury and keep it the whole game, holding the opposing squad to just one run. The Cyclones rolled to victory, 4-1. The Cyclones had a great day of softball overall and played clean defense and hit the ball well. This advanced Highway 91 to the district final game.
On Friday, October 8, the Cyclones traveled to Kearney for the big district final game to see if they could advance on to the state tournament. Highway 91 had to face Kearney Catholic in the best two out of three games. The first game the Cyclones kept the score close, but they weren’t able to beat Kearney Catholic. The score ended 1-5. The second game against Kearney Catholic the Cyclones kept the game close until the last inning where Kearney Catholic pulled ahead, winning with a score of 2-7. The Cyclones unfortunately weren’t able to advance on to the state tournament, defeated by the Stars in two games, which officially ended their successful season.
Head coach, Adam Indra said, “Overall I am very proud of the girls and coaches. We went to an unbelievable venue, played an outstanding team, and battled to the end in both games, giving ourselves opportunities. It was very pleasing being able to watch and be a part of this team taking the program to new levels.”
The Highway 91 Cyclones earned second place in districts and had a great season with a record of 21-11.
Cyclones vs. Centennial:
1 2 3 4 Final
Hwy 91 3 5 3 X 11
Centennial 0 0 0 0 0
Individual Stats from the Centennial Game (By Player): (At Bats, Runs, Putouts)
Nessa Krupka-- 0, 2, 0; Abbey Pieper-- 2, 1, 0; Cassandra Rayback-- 2, 1, 1; Faith Indra-- 1, 3, 1; Kennady Schmidt-- 1, 0, 6; Jaedyn Ratzlaff-- 3, 2, 0; Lilly Praest-- 1, 0, 1; Sasha Perrin-- 1, 0, 3; Sydney Reeves-- 0, 2, 0; Sophia Dvorak-- 2, 0, 0
Cyclones vs. Fairbury/Thayer Central:
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Final
Hwy 91 0 0 2 1 0 1 X 4
Fairbury 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 1
Individual Stats from the Fairbury/Thayer Central Game (By Player): (At Bats, Runs, Putouts)
Nessa Krupka-- 1, 0, 0; Abbey Pieper-- 3, 1, 0; Cassandra Rayback-- 3, 1, 0; Faith Indra-- 3, 1, 2; Kennady Schmidt-- 3, 0, 14; Jaedyn Ratzlaff-- 3, 0, 0; Lilly Praest-- 3, 1, 0; Sasha Perrin-- 3, 0, 5; Sophia Dvorak-- 3, 0, 0
Cyclones vs. Kearney Catholic:
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Final
Hwy 91 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 1
Kearney Catholic 0 0 0 1 3 1 X 5
Individual Stats from Kearney Catholic Game 1 (By Player): (At Bats, Runs, Putouts)
Nessa Krupka-- 2, 0, 2; Abbey Pieper-- 3, 0, 1; Cassandra Rayback-- 3, 0, 1; Faith Indra-- 3, 0, 2; Kennady Schmidt-- 2, 0, 5; Jaedyn Ratzlaff-- 3, 0, 0; Lilly Praest-- 3, 1, 2; Sasha Perrin-- 3, 0, 4; Sophia Dvorak-- 3, 0, 1
Cyclones vs. Kearney Catholic:
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Final
Hwy 91 1 0 0 0 1 0 0 2
Kearney Catholic 1 0 1 0 1 0 4 7
Individual Stats from Kearney Catholic Game 2 (By Player): (At Bats, Runs, Putouts)
Nessa Krupka-- 3, 0, 2; Abbey Pieper-- 3, 0, 2; Cassandra Rayback-- 3, 0, 2; Faith Indra-- 4, 1, 0; Kennady Schmidt-- 3, 0, 10; Jaedyn Ratzlaff-- 3, 1, 1; Lilly Praest-- 3, 0, 0; Sasha Perrin-- 3, 0, 3; Sophia Dvorak-- 3, 0, 1