Back-to-back champs

FORT DODGE — One year ago four standout seniors and Iowa Gatorade Player of the Year Jena Young led Winterset to its fourth state softball championship with a sparkling 37-4 record.

Pitcher Thea Banning, second baseman Lauren Carter, catcher Bridget Stover and center fielder Riley Kious graduated from that team. This was expected to be a rebuilding season, especially Young seemingly lost for the season after undergoing ACL surgery in January.

The current Huskies started off the season 1-3 before winning nine of the next 10 games and getting untracked with its new lineup.

With five new starters in 2023, the Huskies gained back-to-back state championships with a 5-2 victory over North Scott Thursday night in the Class 4A title game. Winterset was seeded seventh in this year’s tourney and 10th on the final regular season ratings. North Scott was seeded eighth at state and ranked 11th. Yet, both combined to knock off the four top-ranked teams at the state tournament.

“Last year we had those seniors and a lot of girls who played this year didn’t play last year,” said junior Molly Breeding, who shared pitching and first base duties with sophomore Brynn Acton in all three state tournament games. “Watching and learning from those seniors gave us confidence. We knew how to win. We watched it.”

Both Breeding and Acton were named to the all-tournament team, with Acton named the captain. They were joined by second baseman Makenna Olson and shortstop Neela Applegate.

The Huskies outhit North Scott 13-5 Thursday, but stayed scoreless until Applegate’s 222-foot solo home run to knot the game at 1-1 in the bottom of the third. Ashlynn Devine’s RBI single pushed the Huskies in front, 2-1, later in the inning.

“It was 1-0 and Neela got us on the board,” coach Steve Corkrean said. “She hit a rope to center field in her first at-bat that was caught.”

In the fifth inning Breeding’s two-run single pushed the Huskies in front for good at 4-2.

“Molly had a big hit for us just like that yesterday when she hit one to the wall against Fort Dodge to score two runs, “Corkrean said. “I watched that girl throw against Norwalk yesterday and she’s good. But, she’s the kind of pitcher we have a tendency to hit pretty hard. She throws a little harder but maybe not as much movement on the ball.”

The Huskies added an insurance run in the sixth. Avary Darling and Olson stroked back-to-back singles. Young, who returned to the lineup as a batter only at state, drew a walk. Brynn Acton delivered an RBI single and Olson was thrown out the plate trying to make it a two-run hit.

The bottom of the seventh was not without drama. With Acton in the circle as both she and Breeding switched off multiple times during the game, leadoff batter Sydney Skarich and McKinley Toohey had consecutive hits. Adalynn Johnson flew out to left to bring up school home run record holder Maddy McDermott to the plate, representing the tying run.

Corkrean called timeout and decided to intentionally walk McDermott, a University of Northern Iowa recruit who had 14 home runs this season.

Skarich scored on Wainwright’s groundout, putting the tying runs on second and third with two outs. Carley Breder then laced a hard flyball to right that was caught by Devine for the final out of the 2023 season, sparking a Huskies celebration on the field.

Acton said both pitchers were familiar with Corkrean’s frequent pitching changes, often made after walks or a count of 2-0 or 3-0 during a control lapse. Corkrean said it’s been a good reset for the defense.

“I started doing this late in the season just because it helps your defense if they know we’re changing things up and kind of resetting,” Corkrean said. “They complement each other well. Brynn is more of a power pitcher, even though she’s battling a leg injury, and Molly uses the changeup well. It’s kind of a mental thing to start over.”

“It usually happens when Molly or I start to lose our control or give up hits that we shouldn’t,” Acton said. “When we’re at first we kind of know it’s coming and you just mentally prepare yourself to come in and do the job. I have faith in Molly when she’s in there, just like she does in me.”

Winterset (28-12) trailed 3-0 against Fort Dodge before pulling out a 6-4 semifinal victory in 10 innings, and came back from a 1-0 deficit Thursday. Acton said the team never panics.

“I just think it’s the way that we’re coached,” she said. “Cork is such a good coach. We show up every day and work our tails off and we know if we keep working then we’ll end up on top. We bounce back well. If we give up a hit or walk or an error, we find a way to get back.”

Even though she only batted in the tournament, Young’s return at state was a spark for the team, which defeated Creston 6-3 and Indianola 6-0 on its way to state.

“Jena had an effect on our kids when she came back,” Corkrean said. “She was with us at every game and every practice, she never missed a thing even though she had no idea that she would be able to play at all until doctors cleared her just before state. She might be at about 65 percent, but she’s pretty good at 65 percent!”

Olson went 3-4 for the Huskies Thursday. Darling, Young and Breeding each had two hits and Breeding finished with two RBIs. Skarich had two of North Scott’s five hits against Breeding and Acton. Breeding pitched two innings and got the win and Acton totaled five innings in earning the save. Breeding was pitching when the Huskies went in front 4-2.

Corkrean said the program has three primary principles to achieve success, regardless of who is in that year’s lineup.

“We emphasize three things,” Corkrean said. “We say good softball is pitching — we work really hard on pitching in the off-season — then good defense and timely hitting.”

On Thursday, it was the winning formula in the biggest game of the season.

Graduating from this team are Darling, Young, third baseman Bailey Acton, Halle Hoefing and Allie Soderberg.