Keagan O’Riley fanned 15 batters Thursday and North Nodaway needed to cling by their fingernails in order to get past NEN 3-1. The Bluejays manufactured a run in the first inning when Paige West hit a grounder that first baseman Ashley Thompson bobbled. West stole second; Blair Stoll struck out, but Maggie Schmitz singled to left center field to score West to make it 1-0. North Nodaway got out of the inning as Delaney McIntyre struck out on a pitch that barely hit the outside corner and Kami Adwell grounded out to O’Riley.
But it looked like Northeast’s tally would stand up for a while. Audrey Trimble walked and stole second and MaKayla Cross moved her to third with a bunt back to the mound. But NEN pitcher Blair Stoll got Kandace Damgar to pop out to Delaney McIntyre at third and catcher Maggie Schmitz caught Shai Dailey’s pop fly for the third out.
Keagan O’Riley kept North Nodaway in the game, as she started striking out everyone right and left. She gave up a single to Marybeth Lamb in the second, but struck out the side to strand her. But shortstop Paige West made an over the shoulder catch in the Mustang second to take a base hit away from Keagan, while Cassy Redden caught Ashley Thompson’s fly ball to center and Angela Standiford caught Kristin Herndon’s pop fly after Emma Hart walked after looking at two close pitches and a low pitch after getting down 1-2.
Once again, O’Riley struck out the side in the third, getting her total up to eight, but Blair Stoll matched her pitch for pitch. Emily Dew was called out on strikes, Alonna Cross struck out swinging, while Paige West took a base hit away from Jadon Dobbins with another running catch.
Keagan O’Riley got her consecutive strikeout total to eight in the fourth, but NEN looked like they would survive the fourth as Stoll grabbed Trimble’s hot shot for the first out. But then things turned out similar to the North Harrison game last fall. In that game, NEN completely outplayed the Shamrocks, who would go on to take third in state that year, through three, only to fall apart in the fourth. MaKayla Cross hit what looked like a routine fly ball to right, but Marybeth Lamb dropped it for an error and Cross was on second with one out. That opened the floodgates as Kandace Damgar singled to left to tie the game at one and took second on a wild pitch. Shai Dailey hit a base hit into center, but Cassy Redden came up with it quickly despite a quirky hop, threw it to Paige on the cutoff, and West threw a strike to home and catcher Maggie Schmitz blocked the plate perfectly to preserve the 1-1 tie as Dailey took second.
Blair Stoll had two strikes on Keagan O’Riley and tried to serve her a change to get to three strikes and get out of the inning, but O’Riley turned on it and hit a screamer off McIntyre’s foot at third and into no-man’s land; McIntyre was shaken up and left fielder Kami Adwell had to go get the ball as O’Riley took second with a double and Dailey scored to break the 1-1 tie. Ashley Thompson shot one just past Angela Standiford at second for another base hit to make it 3-1 and took second on a wild pitch and Emma Hart took a 3-2 pitch just low to put runners on first and second as the sixth straight Mustang batter reached safely. Unlike the North Harrison game, where the Shamrocks got to 12 runs in the fourth and ended it next inning, NEN got out of the inning as Kristin Herndon hit a fly ball to right, but Lamb atoned for her mistake earlier in the inning by catching it to end the inning.
Marybeth Lamb did all she could to start the fifth, going from 1-2 to 3-2 and working an 11 pitch at-bat against Keagan O’Riley, fouling pitch after pitch into the stands. Finally, O’Riley got her to strike out and Angela Standiford was called out on strikes as O’Riley got to 10 straight strikeouts. Paige West reached for the second time on a Mustang error as she bunted and third baseman Kristin Herndon hurried her throw and threw it away. But Blair Stoll hit it hard, but right at first baseman Ashley Thompson for the third out. Maggie Schmitz came on to retire the Mustangs in order in the sixth, but O’Riley finished strongly, getting Maggie Schmitz and Delaney McIntyre out on strikes and Madelynn Mattson to pop out.
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