INDIAN SOFTBALL TEAM'S 4-1 START UNDER NEW HEAD COACH INCLUDES SWEEP AT CHARLES CITY TOURNEY

The initial venture into coaching high school softball for first-year Waukon Indian head softball coach Jim Mauss got off to a very encouraging start this past week. Coach Mauss and his Indian field charges have gotten their young season off to a 4-1 start so far, including three victories at the Charles City Tournament this past weekend.
After opening the season with a 14-1 pasting of cross-county foe Postville Tuesday, May 30, the Indians dropped a 3-0 decision at Independence Thursday, June 1 in just half of what was supposed to be a varsity doubleheader. The Tribe rebounded nicely from that initial loss, however, allowing their three opponents at the Charles City Tournament a combined total of just one run in recording three consecutive victories. The Indians downed Osage by a 6-1 final, got by Clear Lake, 1-0, and manhandled Forest City by a 9-0 end result.
"We're still making some small mistakes, but I'm pretty pleased with how we're progressing," Coach Mauss said. "We made some baserunning mistakes over the weekend, but we're playing pretty solid defense and we're hitting the ball pretty well. We should continue seeing improvement as we get further into the season."
The Indians will now prepare to open their home season Tuesday, June 6 by hosting Charles City before playing host to Decorah in a varsity doubleheader Thursday, June 8. The Indians will then compete in the Anamosa Tournament Saturday, June 10 before returning home for back-to-back games with Oelwein Tuesday, June 13 and MFL/Mar Mac Wednesday, June 14.

at Postville ...
The Indian softball girls made the debut of their new head coach a very successful one, blasting Postville in six innings by a 14-1 final result. The Indians hammered away at the host Pirates for 13 hits and got a four-hit, five-strikeout performance from senior pitcher Kara Rea to secure their coach's first career victory.
"We hit the ball well," Coach Jim Mauss said. "We made a few errors, but I guess that's to be expected. It was nice to get on the board right away. It helped settle some nerves for both the girls and myself."
The Indians did strike almost immediately in the contest, as sophomore center fielder Shelby Nordheim reached first on an error, took second on a passed ball and was driven in by senior catcher Cassie Reinke for an early, 1-0 Indian advantage. The Pirates were also able to manage a pair of baserunners in the opening frame, but could not push either across.
A scoreless second inning gave way to a four-run Indian surge in the third, with Nordheim again starting it off with a single, swiping second and being driven in by a single from Reinke. Sophomore designated hitter Jennifer Evanson joined Reinke on the basepaths on a fielder's choice, and both were then driven in by a crushing double to right field by junior second baseman Crystal Magner. A ground ball off the bat of junior right fielder Colleen Tierney then brought Magner around to score, boosting the Indian lead to 5-0.
Another scoreless exchange in the fourth frame was followed by a two-run Indian fifth inning. Magner reached safely on an error to lead off the inning before Tierney joined her on the bases with a single. A passed ball moved both runners up a bag before a ground ball by senior first baseman Allison Blocker brought Magner home. Tierney was able to race home on a passed ball to improve the Tribe's advantage to 7-0 before the inning was ended.
Rea gave up just her second hit of the evening in the bottom half of the fifth frame, but that one-out single proved to be harmless two batters later, the Indian shutout still intact. The Tribe's defensive stand was complemented nicely by an offensive outburst in the top of the sixth that doubled the Indians' run total for the ballgame and all but finished off the Pirates.
Nordheim was again the catalyst for the eruption, as she began the inning with a lead-off single, stole second and did not wait long until Reinke was able to triple her in for the second time in the ballgame, driving her in for the third time in the contest. Reinke was able to score on a fielder's choice by Magner, who was advanced a bag by a Tierney single and brought home on a Pirate error in Blocker's at-bat for a double-digit Indian lead at 10-0.
Another Pirate error in Rea's at-bat loaded the bases with Indians before senior third baseman Michelle Valley singled in both Tierney and Blocker for two more Indian runs. Nordheim also had the final say in the Indian outburst, stepping to the plate for the second time in the inning and singling once again, this time driving in both pinch-running freshman Jessie Snitker and Valley to improve the Indian standing to 14-0.
On its last legs, Postville did have one final offensive breath remaining, doubling its hit total for the game with a double and single in the bottom of the sixth to get on the board for the first time in the ballgame. That single run was all the Indians would allow, however, as the next three Pirate batters were retired in order to secure the 14-1 Indian victory.
In her six-inning victory, Rea allowed just four hits, struck out five batters and walked none. Postville's Katrina Schultz gave up 13 Indian hits in the loss, hitting one batter and striking out two others.

Junior varsity ...
The junior varsity Indians used a five-run fourth inning to break open a somewhat close affair with Postville, going on to secure the 11-4 victory. The Indians did secure four hits in the ballgame, but also took advantage of nine walks, five passed balls and three Pirate errors.
The big blast in the ballgame was a run-scoring triple by freshman third baseman Sarah Snitker in the fourth frame. That RBI-producer also put Snitker in position to score on one of those five passed balls, boosting the Indian run total to 10. Sophomores Jaime Welch and Melissa Kleinow, and eighth grader Tami Magner, each had singles in the contest.

at Independence ...
The softball Indians had, perhaps, used up all of their offense in their date with Postville, struggling to just five hits and no runs in falling by a 3-0 count at Independence Thursday, June 1. The affair was scheduled to be a varsity doubleheader, but the second game was called after just one scoreless inning due to rain.
"Not much to speak of for us," Waukon girls softball coach Jim Mauss said. "We couldn't come up with the big hits when we really needed them. Our defense was a little shaky at the start of the game, but we settled in to play pretty good softball after that."
That shaky start to the game began with a three-up, three-down Indian half of the initial frame and was compounded by a three-hit, two-run bottom half of the frame by the host Mustangs. Two doubles and a single helped boost Independence to an early, 2-0 lead after one complete inning of play.
The two teams then settled in to exchange stiff defensive stands over the next four frames. Independence managed just two harmless singles in those four frames, while the Indians were able to record hits in all four frames, but could not produce anything from them.
Another three-up, three-down frame for the Tribe in the top of the sixth gave way to another scoring output by Independence in the bottom half of the frame. A one-out single, followed by a passed ball, was capitalized on with a two-out double to right-center field for a 3-0 Mustang advantage heading into the final inning of play.
A lead-off single to left field by senior first baseman Allison Blocker got the Indians' final opportunity in the seventh off to a good start, but an ensuing ground ball by senior pitcher Kara Rea resulted in a double play that dampened the Tribe's hopes of a late rally. Another ground ball completely doused those hopes, leaving the Tribe on the short end of the game's 3-0 end result.
In suffering her first pitching loss of the season, Rea gave up seven Independence hits, struck out six batters and walked none. Reed of Independence secured the win on the mound, giving up five Indian hits and striking out six batters in four innings before being relieved by Osterhaus, who gave up one hit, walked one and struck out three batters.

Charles City Tourney ...
Heading into the weekend with an average, 1-1 record, the Indian softball girls looked anything but average in sweeping through its three ballgames at the Charles City Tournament Saturday, June 3. The Tribe opened the day with a 6-1 handling of Osage before battling Clear Lake to a 1-0 triumph and then closing out the day with a 9-0 pasting of Forest City.
The 1-0 victory over Clear Lake featured a perfect game for Indian senior pitcher Kara Rea, who was victimized by a pair of late Indian errors in the seventh, but faced the seven-inning minimum of 21 batters in the contest to secure the win.
"We really came together well over the weekend," Waukon softball coach Jim Mauss said. "Our defense was outstanding, and we hit the ball well. Our one-run win over Clear Lake was definitely the highlight of the tournament. That was a great game for these girls to be involved in."
The Indians used their first two innings against Osage in the tournament opener to measure up their opponent, neither team able to produce anything on the scoreboard. The Indians changed that in the bottom of the third inning, however, as sophomore shortstop Shannon Rumph led the inning off with a single up the middle, was singled to second by sophomore center fielder Shelby Nordheim, took third on a passed ball, and then scooted home on a two-out single by junior second baseman Crystal Magner for a 1-0 Indian advantage through three frames.
After turning Osage away again in the fourth, the Indians tacked on another run in the bottom of that frame. Sophomore Jennifer Evanson drew a lead-off walk to start the inning before being sacrificed to second and driven in by a one-out double by sophomore left fielder Jaime Welch to double the Indian lead to 2-0.
That pattern continued for the Tribe in the fifth and sixth frames, the Indians turning Osage away on defense in the top of the frame and then adding more runs to their total in the bottom halves of those innings. That run production was stepped up a bit in both the fifth and sixth, however, with two Indian runs scoring in each.
Nordheim drew a lead-off walk to start the fifth and was sacrificed to second by junior right fielder Colleen Tierney before taking third on a passed ball. Senior catcher Cassie Reinke also drew a walk, setting up a double steal situation for the Tribe in which Nordheim was able to score from third on Reinke's swiping of second base. A single by Evanson then moved Reinke to third, from where she scored on an Osage error to improve the Indians to a 4-0 lead over the Green Devils.
The sixth frame also started with lead-off success, as senior third baseman Michelle Valley began the inning with a single up the middle and Rumph was able to follow her with a base on balls. A one-out single by Tierney brought Valley home before a fielder's choice on Reinke's at-bat pushed Rumph across the plate to finalize the Indian scoring at six runs.
Osage got its final opportunity in the top of the seventh off to an encouraging start, turning a one-out single into a run with a two-out double. A fly ball to right field ended any further chance of a Green Devil comeback, however, sealing the 6-1 Indian victory.
Indian senior pitcher Kara Rea allowed just four Osage hits in picking up the win on the mound, striking out four batters and walking two more along the way. Osage's Horota allowed eight Indian hits, walking five Indians and striking out four.

The softball Indians' 1-0 victory over Clear Lake in their second game of the tournament turned out to be a gem in more ways than one. Not only was the battle between the two teams a defensive delight, but the game also turned out to be pitching perfection for Indian senior hurler Kara Rea.
The Indian senior slinger faced the minimum of 21 batters in the seven-inning affair, mowing six of those 21 down on strikes. A defensive letdown by the Tribe in the top of the seventh frame almost proved costly, however, putting both the perfect game and the Indian win in jeopardy.
With a 1-0 lead intact heading into that final frame, Clear Lake's lead-off batter reached first on an Indian infield error. That runner then stole second base, taking third on an errant throw to second and setting herself up to try and knot the score. Rea took the next batter out on strikes and then got a fly ball to left field from the next batter for the second out of the inning.
On that fly ball, however, the Clear Lake runner on third tagged up and took off for home. Indian sophomore left fielder Jaime Welch fired a shot to senior catcher Cassie Reinke, who applied the tag to the sliding Clear Lake runner, securing the out and ending the game with the Tribe's 1-0 lead still remaining on the scoreboard.
The Indians didn't have all that much luck with Clear Lake pitcher Keefe either, collecting just four hits and striking out three times. Two of those hits, however, produced the Tribe's single run of the ballgame.
Junior second baseman Crystal Magner led off the bottom of the second inning with a double to right field for the first Indian hit of the contest. Sophomore designated hitter Jennifer Evanson then stepped to the plate and traded places with Magner, doubling her home for the early, 1-0 Indian advantage that would remain as the game's final score four-and-a-half innings later.

Fired up from their exciting victory over Clear Lake, the Indians exercised their jubilation on Forest City in their final contest of the Charles City Tournament. The Tribe hammered away for 10 hits, half of them for extra bases, and got a three-hit, three-strikeout pitching effort from junior Vickyann Venes to hang a 9-0 loss on the other Indians from Forest City.
Venes and her Indian defensive counterparts remained at their near-peak performance level on the field, setting Forest City down in order in three of the game's seven innings and, with the exception of a five-batter third inning, allowing no more than four Forest City batters to come to the plate in any other frame of the contest. Only five Forest City baserunners were allowed in the contest, none of those five being allowed past second base.
On the offensive end, the Orange and Black established itself early, with a two-run first inning, and consistently, adding another two runs every other inning until erupting for a three-run sixth frame. That two-run initial frame began with junior center fielder Colleen Tierney dropping in a one-out single to left and senior catcher Cassie Reinke joining her in scoring position with a double up the middle. Sophomore designated hitter Jennifer Evanson did not hang those two out to dry, ripping a single down the right field line to score both and provide an instant, 2-0 Indian lead.
Reinke blasted her second double of the game to lead off the third inning, with junior second baseman Crystal Magner scoring Reinke with an ensuing triple to right field. Magner was able to race home on a ground ball to second, doubling the Indian lead to 4-0 through three innings of play.
The combination of Reinke, Magner and Evanson again teamed up to produce runs in the fifth frame, Reinke again leading the inning off by reaching base with a walk. Magner singled Reinke into scoring position, setting the table for Evanson's fourth RBI of the ballgame, as she roped a double to left field to score Reinke.
A fielder's choice allowed senior first baseman Allison Blocker to reach safely and move Magner to third. Blocker was then thrown out trying to steal second, but the play at bag number two allowed Magner plenty of time to blaze home for a 6-0 Indian advantage.
The finishing touches and a near-early end to the ballgame unfolded in the bottom of the sixth frame. Senior third baseman Michelle Valley and sophomore shortstop Shannon Rumph led the inning off by both reaching safely. Tierney joined that pair in loading the bases with a one-out walk before Reinke stepped to the plate and knocked all three girls home with her second double of the ballgame, finalizing the Indian scoring at nine runs for the contest.
The final three Forest City batters of the ballgame were turned away in order in the top of the seventh frame, putting an end to the no-contest contest with the Tribe firmly in control with a 9-0 triumph.
Venes walked just one batter in going the distance for the pitching win, allowing three hits and posting three strikeouts along the way. Forest City's Jensen allowed nine Indian hits and walked one batter in five innings on the mound. Christensen came on in relief in the sixth, giving up one hit, walking one batter and striking out another.