New London takes fifth at state

FORT DODGE ? The 2016 state tournament didn?t start like the New London softball team wanted it to, but the Tigers were able to salvage the trip with a couple of big wins on Wednesday.

After using a three-run eighth inning to upend West Harrison, 5-3 in extra innings to advance to the fifth-place game, New London beat up on Belle Plaine, 9-1, to pick up their third Top-5 finish in three years.

New London was the home team in the fifth-place game and they got things started early on both offense and defense.

The Tigers scored the first run on the game thanks to some hustle from Carson McSorely.

After walking with one out, McSorely scampered to second and turned for third thanks to an error by the Belle Plaine catcher. The Plainsmen outfield was slow to get to the ball in the outfield and she rounded third and reached home to make it a 1-0 game.

McSorely walked again in the third inning and once again it led to a run. This time, she reached base with one out and advanced to second base on a passed ball. Morgan Christner singled to the outfield and McSorely scored her second run to make it 2-0 Tigers after three innings.

New London broke the game wide open in the fourth inning thanks to a few Belle Plaine miscues.

Breanna Mettler started things off when she reached on an error to lead off the inning. Victoria Noel put runners on the corners with a single and Layney Loyd singled courtesy runner Savannah Sutherland in to make it 3-0 with nobody out.

Later in the inning, Loyd scored on an error after Kenadi Schulte reached on a fielder?s choice. Jade Christensen then reached on an error by the third basemen scoring both Camryn Blint and Schulte.

McSorely came up to bat with a runner on third and one out. She brought in Schulte on an RBI groundout to stretch the lead to 7-0.

Meanwhile, Christner was dominant on the mound. She shut the Plainsmen out for the first five innings to preserve the seven-run lead.

Belle Plaine finally scored a run in the top of the sixth inning on an RBI single with nobody out, but the Tiger defense tightened up immediately. Mettler threw a runner out trying to steal second and Christner got a strikeout and a line out to get out of the inning.

The New London offense was right back at it in the sixth inning. Blint and Schulte walked to lead off the inning and Blint scored on an error by the pitcher on a sacrifice bunt by Christensen.

With one out in the inning, Christner made it 9-1 with an RBI groundout to second base. The eight-run lead was plenty enough as Belle Plaine went one-two-three in the seventh.

Christner picked up her second win of the day and her sixth state tournament victory in the last four years. She threw seven innings and gave up just one earned run on four hits and no walks, while striking out nine batters.

The Tigers only had four hits on the day, but Belle Plaine helped them out with seven errors in the field.

Loyd was 1-3 with an RBI and a run scored. Mettler and Victoria Noel were each 1-3 and Christner was 1-4 with two RBIs. McSorely finished 0-2 with an RBI and two runs scored. Blint and Schulte each scored two runs and Christensen and Sutherland scored one.

Coming into this year, New London already had two top five finishes in the three years prior. In 2013, the Tigers placed second and last season they placed third.

New London will lose five seniors to graduation; Schulte, Christner, Josten Boyer, Noel and Emma Pry, who was injured earlier this season.