Spartan softball sweeps home opener

CNA photo by BEN FROTSCHER Sweep: Southwestern pitcher Ashtyn Neill winds up for a throw during MondayÕs doubleheader with Central Columbus (Neb.). Neill pitched a no-hitter while walking three batters in a 6-0 game one victory. The Spartans swept Central Columbus with a 24-8 game two win.

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It wasn’t always the prettiest softball for Southwestern coach Lindsay Stumpff, but Monday’s home opener with Central Columbus (Neb.) ended with a good note. After a no-hitter by Ashtyn Neill in a game one 6-0 victory, the Spartans exploded for 24 runs in the second game to sweep the doubleheader with a 24-8 win. In game one, Neill had her best outing of the season by striking out seven and walking just three batters. The Spartans had three errors in the ballgame as well. “Ashtyn pitched a really good game,” said Stumpff. “Hitting-wise, it took a while to get the bats going. We scored two in the first inning, but she was a slower pitcher and it’s harder to hit slow pitchers.” Offensively, former Creston player Brittney Auten led the Spartans with two home runs, a three-RBI home run in the first inning and a solo shot in the third. Auten has now hit four home runs for the season and was hitting .380 going into Monday’s game. “I think the lower level teams will stop pitching to her, but the teams that are higher up in the rankings aren’t going to be too scared,” said Stumpff. “They’ll take their chances.” The offensive onslaught continued in game two for Auten, going 2-for-3 at the plate, but the rest of the Spartan team helped out at the plate in the 24-8 win. The Spartans were helped by an 11-run fourth inning. Tiffany Troutwine, a sophomore from Grant City, Mo., led the team by going 3-for-4 in the win while collecting four RBIs. Troutwine also had a home run in the first inning and a pair of doubles. Erin Newbury and Cortni Livengood also had a pair of hits in the win. “I don’t know if we’ll ever get 24 runs again,” said Stumpff. “Offensively we picked it up a lot more. Defensively we were sluggish and thankfully our bats were there to pick us up. Our first four games we had two errors and now the errors are starting to pick up. We’ve struggled with slow rollers. We sit back and wait for the ball to come to us. When we get more disciplined teams, we’re going to have to be sharp.” Tiffany Coon picked up the win for Southwestern in game two. Up next for the Spartans (6-4 overall) is a doubleheader Wednesday at home against Kirkwood. Game time is 3 p.m. “I told our team that the pressure is on Kirkwood,” said Stumpff. “We were picked at the bottom of the conference and they’re the ones that were picked toward the top. I think we play better with teams of higher athletic ability. We sometimes play to the level of our opponent.” Southwestern 6, Central Columbus 0 R H E CCCC 000 000 0 — 0 0 0 SWCC 201 102 x — 6 7 3 S: Ashtyn Neill 7K 3BB and Angie Hawkins. C: Lydia Moseman 3K 6BB and Sara Shively. W — Neill (3-2). L — Shively. HR — S: Brittney Auten 2. 2B — S: Hawkins. RBI — S: Auten 4, Jodie Beitz 1. Multiple hitters — S: Auten 2. Southwestern 24, Central Columbus 8 R H E CCCC 421 01 — 8 14 5 SWCC 832 (11)x — 24 14 7 S: Tiffany Coon 3K 0BB and Angie Hawkins. C: Megan Furgison 0K 2BB, Lydia Moseman (1) 0K 2BB 1HBP, Heather Colby (4) 0K 4BB and Sara Shively. W — Coon (3-2). L — Furgison. HR — S: Tiffany Troutwine. 3B — S: Brittney Auten. 2B — S: Tiffany Jeanes, Cortni Livengood, Troutwine 2. RBI — S: Troutwine 4, Kaylee Harris 2, Erin Newbury 2, Livengood 2, Auten 1, Hawkins 1, Jeanes 1. Multiple hitters — S: Troutwine 3, Auten 2, Newbury 2, Livengood 2. —————— Ben Frotscher can be reached at 782-2141, ext. 246 or bfrotscher@crestonnews.com