Softball ends skid at 13

Thirteen has always been heralded as an unlucky number, and that?s why the Washington softball team is happy to be rid of it.

In a weekend tournament in Fairfield, the Demons ended their 13-game losing streak, defeating Davis County 7-2.

In the three games, the Demons went 1-2 in the tournament, falling to Cardinal 5-1, and New London 7-0, before picking up the victory.

?The win was good, it just wasn?t very pretty,? Washington head coach Angie Shrader said. ?All our runs scored were off of wild pitches, so we?ll take it, but we?ve played better softball and lost. You have to take the good with the bad.?

The Demons stand at 2-13 after the tournament, their previous win coming in the season-opener against Columbus.

In that stretch, the Demons have faced off against a number of ranked opponents, including Fairfield, Keokuk, New London, Highland and Oskaloosa, but things don?t get much easier for the Demons.

After hosting Fort Madison in a doubleheader on Thursday, the Demons will face off against a ranked Mid-Prairie team next week, and the rest of the season still has doubleheaders with Keokuk and Fairfield remaining.

?I don?t think our stretch really ends,? Shrader said. ?Most of our season is against ranked teams, and it?s a tough schedule for anyone, let alone a team that is as young as we are. We are playing seven innings, and we?ve only had a couple of games end early. We aren?t getting blown out, and we are just going to get better.?

The Demons opened up the tournament against New London, where Washington was limited to only two hits in the contest.

Both hits came from freshman Morgan Brinning, who went 2-for-3 in the 7-0 loss.

In the second game of the tournament against Cardinal, the Demons managed five hits, with two more coming from Brinning in the game, before falling 5-1.

In the final game, the Demons only picked up two hits, gaining one each from Kayla Andrew and Haylee Wilson. The Demons scored all of their runs on passed balls with Brinning scoring twice, and Andrew picking up two runs.

?Megan Mitchell has been hitting the ball really well,? Shrader said. ?Ever since we lost Kolbi (Breard) for a while with a concussion, Morgan Brinning has done a better job of being more vocal. She is talking a bit more and we are playing really good defense. Our bats are what are struggling right now, and we have to fight through that.?

Washington will take on Fort Madison in a conference doubleheader on Thursday.