KNOXVILLE — Oskaloosa’s softball team got its offense going early and often en route to an 11-2 thrashing to Little Hawkeye Conference foe Knoxville Monday night.
The Indians (8-7 overall, 2-4 LHC) banged out 15 hits, scoring six runs in the opening inning and never looked back.
“This was by far our best game of the year. The girls really got after it at the plate in the first couple of innings,” Oskaloosa coach Jay Harms said. “This is the hardest we have hit the ball since the North Mahaska game. Outside of the fifth inning when Knoxville touched Emily (Street) for three hits — Emily threw a very good ballgame (her location was much better than it has been). It makes it a lot easier to pitch and play defense when you have a nice lead. Hopefully this win will get us going in the conference. Knoxville had defeated Pella and Newton earlier — two teams that had already beaten us.”
Oskaloosa had five straight hits in the first inning and added a Megan Gott single that plated two more runs in the second.
Gott, Ashley Jimenez and Sarah Hynick all had three hits in the game as Gott drove in five runs. Hynick knocked in three runs and Jimenez scored three times.
Street improved to 5-4 on the season as she struck out nine and surrendered seven hits to the Panthers.
Oskaloosa returns to action Wednesday with a freshman-junior varsity-varsity tripleheader at home against Grinnell.
Oskaloosa 11, Knoxville 2
Osky 620 300 0 — 11 15 0
Knox 000 020 0 — 2 7 5
Oskaloosa pitching — Emily Street (W, 5-4, 7 IP, 2 R, 7 H, 2 BB, 9 K).
2B — Dana Van Renterghem, Megan Gott.
Hits — Gott 3-for-4, Ashley Jimenez 3-for-4, Sarah Hynick 3-for-5, Van Renterghem 2-for-4, Street 1-for-3, Amanda Christenson 1-for-5, Renee Lenox 1-for-5, Samantha Allgood 1-for-3. Runs — Jimenez 3, Me. Gott 2, Hynick 2, Christenson, Allgood, Mackenzie Gott, Brittany Sams. RBI — Me. Gott 5, Van Renterghem 3, Allgood, Hynick, Jacque Terrell.
