COBB — Iowa–Grant ran its winning streak to 11 games with a 13–2 five-inning victory over Southwestern on Monday.
Senior Brea Stanton went 2-for-3 with a homer and picked up her 15th victory of the season, pitching four solid innings.
Maranda McCarthy pitched a scoreless fifth to close out the win.
I–G scored five runs in the bottom of the first and never looked back. At the end of three innings, coach Deanna Fulton’s team held a commanding 12–2 lead.
Senior first baseman Kylie Moneypenny (2-for-3), senior outfielder Taylor Jackson (2-for-4) and junior Lauren Winkler (2-for-3) all had two hits in the win for Iowa–Grant.
With the win I–G avenged a 14–8 loss to the Wildcats (11–11, 6–7) on April 23 at Southwestern.
The Panthers improved to 15–3 overall and 10–3 in the SWAL. They are now alone in second-place after Mineral Point’s (12–5, 9–4) loss to Boscobel on Monday.
Cuba City (19–2, 12–1) clinched the outright SWAL title Monday with an 8–0 win over Riverdale. Iowa–Grant split with the Cubans this season and could face them again in the WIAA Division 3 regional playoffs next week.
The playoffs begin Tuesday, but the WIAA will not announce its first-round pairing until Thursday morning.
Iowa–Grant is in a seven-team regional with Cuba City, Boscobel, Darlington, Lancaster, Mineral Point and Prairie du Chien. The Cubans will most likely receive the top seed and a first-round bye on Tuesday. Iowa–Grant could earn the two seed and will almost assuredly host a first-round game when the playoffs begin.
The Panthers traveled to Belmont (17–6) this past Tuesday and will close out the regular season Friday in a resumed game at Boscobel.
I–G held a 3–0 lead in the top of the third inning at Boscobel on Thursday when the game was postponed by rain.
Last Friday, Iowa–Grant scored five runs in the bottom of the sixth inning to blow open a close game and defeat visiting Platteville 8–1. McCarthy had a two-run single in the sixth to key the win.
Stanton struck out six and didn’t allow a walk. Georgie Faull went 2-for-2 in the win.
Junior Sierra Brecke went 2-for-3 and hit a solo homer in the fifth to account for Platteville’s lone run.
Iowa–Grant 8, Platteville 1
(from Friday, May 15 @ Cobb)
Platteville 000 001 0 — 1 5 3
Iowa–Grant 200 105 x — 8 7 1
Leading hitters — P: Sierra Brecke 2x3; Georgie Faull 2x2. 2B — P: Brecke; IG: Emma Liddicoat. HR — P: Brecke. W — Brea Stanton (14–3, 7 IP, 5 H, 1 ER, 6 SO, 0 BB). L — KD Hoyer (3–8, 5.1 IP, 5 H, 5 R, 2 ER, 1 SO, 1 BB.
Iowa–Grant 13, Southwestern 2
(from Monday, May 18 @ Livingston)
Southwestern 020 00 — 2 6 3
Iowa–Grant 525 1x — 13 12 1
Leading hitters — S: Amber Brandt 2x3, Kephart 2x2; IG: Taylor Jackson 2x4, Brea Stanton 2x3, Kylie Moneypenny 2x3, Lauren Winkler 2x3 2B — S: Brandt. HR — IG: Stanton. W — Brea Stanton (15–3, 4 IP, 7 H, 2 ER, 0 SO, 0 BB). L — Madison Kuhl (4 IP, 12 H, 13 R, 10 R, 4 SO, 2 BB)
ROCKY SEASON CONTINUES FOR PLATTEVILLE
ARGYLE — Platteville’s 2015 softball season continued to be a challenge as the Hillmen lost three of four games last week to fall to 5–11.
Platteville blew an early 4–3 lead by allowing thre runs in the bottom of the fifth inning in a 5–4 non-conference loss at Argyle last Monday.
Juniors Sierra Brecke and Lexi Budden both homered and combined to drive in seven runs a day later as the Hillmen bounced back with a 10–0 non-conference win at Fennimore.
Thursday Platteville misplayed back-to-back fly balls in the outfield allowing SWC champion River Valley to score three runs in the bottom of the sixth in a 4–1 loss to the host Blackhawks (17–4, 9–0 SWC).
Friday Iowa–Grant’s Brea Stanton kept the Hillmen hitters off balance as the Panthers scored an 8–2 non-conference win at Livingston.
“We are in the process of getting better we just haven’t seen that success in terms of wins,” said Platteville head coach Jim Lawinger. “It’s been a pretty unlucky season so far. We just need a bit of luck to turn it around. We aren’t that bad of a team even though we don’t look that good right now.”
Platteville traveled to Richland Center on Tuesday and will close out the season Thursday at Boscobel.
The Hillmen will begin the WIAA Division 2 playoffs on Tuesday, most likely on the road. The WIAA will not announce the first-round playoff pairings until Thursday morning as area seeding meetings are scheduled for Wednesday night.
Argyle 5, Platteville 4
(from Monday, May 11 @ Argyle)
Platteville 211 000 0 — 4 5 3
Argyle 020 030 x — 5 6 3
Leading hitters — P: Montana Kastner 2x2, K.D. Hoyer 2x4. 2B — P: Claire Tashner; A: Butler, Langmeier. W — Butler-Paulson (4 IP, 1 H, 1 R, 0 ER, 4 SO, 2 BB) . L — Sierra Brecke (1–2, 6 IP, 6 H, 5 R, 5 ER, 4 SO, 5 BB).
Platteville 10, Fennimore 1
(from Tuesday, May 12 @ Fennimore)
Platteville 320 005 —10 13 2
Fennimore 000 000 — 0 6 3
Leading hitters — P: Claire Tashner 3x5, Lexi Budden 3x4, Sierra Brecke 2x5, Tessa Ostendorf 2x3; F: Glassbrenner 2x4. 2B — P: Tashner, Budden, Wein. HR — P: Brecke, Budden. W — Sierra Brecke (2–2, 7 IP, 6 H, 0 R, 2 SO, 3 BB). L — Strief (7 IP, 13 H, 10 R, 8 ER, 4 SO, 4 BB).
River Valley 4, Platteville 1
(from Thursday, May 14 @ Spring Green)
Platteville 000 100 0 — 1 4 1
River Valley 100 003 x — 4 3 0
Leading hitters — RV: Kylie Hoffman 2x3. 2B — P: Ashley Budden; RV: Hoffman 2. 3B — P: Montana Kastner. W — Hoffman (7 IP, 4 H, 1 ER, 12 SO, 0 BB). L — KD Hoyer (3–7, 6 IP, 3 H, 4 R, 2 ER, 3 SO, 3 BB).
Iowa–Grant 8, Platteville 1
(from Friday, May 15 @ Cobb)
Platteville 000 001 0 — 1 5 3
Iowa–Grant 200 105 x — 8 7 1
Leading hitters — P: Sierra Brecke 2x3; Georgie Faull 2x2. 2B — P: Brecke; IG: Emma Liddicoat. HR — P: Brecke. W — Brea Stanton (14–3, 7 IP, 5 H, 1 ER, 6 SO, 0 BB). L — KD Hoyer (3–8, 5.1 IP, 5 H, 5 R, 2 ER, 1 SO, 1 BB.
