Softball playoff capsules

The 2015 softball postseason got under way last night, but for most area teams, it proved to be a wash, as storms rolled through the county.

The only team to see action last night was Iowa Mennonite, who took on HLV in a first-round regional matchup.

IMS ended its season with a 5-1 loss at HLV, finishing the year with a 1-17 record.

For the rest of the area softball teams, the postseason will get started in the next three days, with Keota hosting a Class 1A postseason game on Tuesday night, while Highland, Columbus and Mid-Prairie will be in action on Wednesday.

Washington will open its postseason on Thursday.

Washington (6-26)

The Demons will face a familiar opponent on Thursday when they travel down to Fairfield to take on the No. 14 ranked Trojans in a Class 4A opener.

Fairfield swept the season series between the two rivals, but in the most recent pair of games, the Demons proved they could hang with the Trojans.

A walk-off win gave Fairfield a 4-3 victory in Game 1 of the recent doubleheader, while two unearned runs helped them defeat Washington 4-1 in the second game.

The Demons are currently in the midst of their best stretch of the season, picking up four wins since June 27, and have won two in a row, defeating Mt. Pleasant 8-7 and Williamsburg 5-4 on Thursday and Friday.

A regular-season finale against Central Lee (Tuesday at 7 p.m.) will be the final tune-up opportunity before the game against Fairifeld.

Over the season, Washington?s top hitter has been freshman Morgan Brinning, who leads the team with a .429 average, .480 on-base percentage, 10 doubles and 21 runs scored.

Brinning has the only Demon homerun this season, and is also tied with freshman Brooke Stout for the team lead in RBIs with 14 on the year.

Washington has been able to gain a lot of experience this season with a young team, with 13 different players starting at least six games, and the Demons hope that playing time pays off in the postseason.

If the Demons advance past Fairfield, they would take on Oskaloosa in the next round of action. Osky swept the Demons in a doubleheader earlier this season, utilizing a 7-5 walk-off victory and two unearned runs to claim a 5-2 victory in the second game.

Mid-Prairie (21-12)

In Class 3A action, the Mid-Prairie softball team has its eyes set on a sixth-straight state tournament berth, but the path won?t be easy.

However, that?s not something new to the Golden Hawks, as they play one of the toughest schedules in the state.

Ranked No. 12 in Class 3A, the Hawks have stumbled into the postseason in terms of win-loss record, falling in five of their last nine games, but the competition they have faced is fierce.

Included in the loss column for the Hawks are a 7-5 loss to Class 1A, No. 2 ranked New London, a 6-0 loss to Class 5A Cedar Rapids Prairie (23-10), a 1-0 loss to Class 4A, No. 5 ranked Carlisle, and a 10-5 loss to Class 4A, No. 14 ranked Fairfield.

The biggest test for Mid-Prairie, if they get past a postseason opening game against Central Lee on Wednesday night, will be a potential game against No. 1 ranked Solon, who has to get past Williamsburg on Wednesday night.

That shouldn?t faze the Hawks, who have a number of athletes still on the team from last year?s state qualifying team, which had to fight past No. 1 ranked Benton on its way to the tournament last year.

The reason the Hawks are dangerous starts with their offense.

Junior Amber Kral leads the state with 67 RBIs, including 11 homeruns and a .476 average, while the No. 1 and 2 hitters, Alex Rath and Lexi Duwa, seem to get on base every time they step to the plate, boasting on-base percentages of .620 and .555 respectively.

Emma Troyer has been strong in the circle for Mid-Prairie, earning a 12-5 record this season and working her way to a 2.93 ERA as a junior.

Taylor Kurtz, who missed time in the middle of the season due to an injury, will also figure to be a big part of the Hawks? pitching game, as she holds a 7-6 record with a 2.59 ERA.

Highland (22-5)

The Highland softball team is looking for its second-straight trip to state, and ranked No. 3 in the state, they are favored to get out of their bracket.

If they defeat the winner of Tipton and North Cedar on Wednesday night, the Huskies will turn their attention to a potential familiar opponent in Wapello.

Ranked No. 9 in Class 2A, the Arrows must get past Wilton on Wednesday to earn the date with Highland, but the Huskies will have home field advantage and have the head-to-head momentum between the pair of teams.

In the midst of a busy week, the Huskies traveled to Wapello on Wednesday of last week and picked up a 5-0, 4-1 sweep of the Arrows.

Highland has won seven of its last eight games, the lone loss coming in a morning makeup game against Lone Tree on Thursday, and with eight seniors on the squad, the Huskies have one goal in their mind: a state title.

The pitching and defense have been stellar for the Huskies this season, as senior pitcher Katie Springer has put together a 20-4 season with a 1.09 ERA, giving up only 22 earned runs this season.

As a team, the Huskies have given up only 56 runs this year, an average of just over two per game.

With that, the Huskies offense hasn?t had to do too much this year, but they?ve shown that when they need to get runs, anyone can produce.

Eight Huskies have recorded double-digit RBIs, led by Cheyann Adamson and Bailey Walsh who each have 22 this year, while six different players have scored at least 16 runs on the year, led by Kelsey Hora?s 40.

Hora leads the team in average this season, batting .529 and getting on base at a clip of .573, while senior catcher Courtnee Hahn is second on the team with a .539 on-base percentage and leads the team with 21 walks.