The Jackson County Central softball team swept a home doubleheader against Luverne on Thursday night.
Rain and lightning delayed the first pitch for nearly two hours but after just the wind was left the fourth-ranked Huskies rallied to beat the Cardinals 6-4 in the first game.
Hadley Wachal tossed her 500th strikeout among 15 K’s. She allowed four runs with a trio of them earned on three hits plus six walks. She also had an RBI and a pair of walks at the plate.
The Cardinals took the 1-0 lead in the top of the first inning. JCC took advantage of Luverne miscues to take a 2-1 lead in the bottom half. The Cardinals got a three-run home run in the second to make it 4-2 Cardinals.
JCC got a run back in the home half when Braelyn Boogerd scored on a passed ball.
The Huskies took the lead back 5-4 with another pair in the third. Miley VanDeVere doubled to score Kinley VanDeVere. Miley VanDeVere later scored on a single by Jess Dvorak. CJ Pauling doubled to bring Baylie Holmes to the plate in the fifth and complete the scoring.
Kinley VanDeVere stole four bases and scored twice to go with a hit and a walk. Holmes and Bailey Finck each had one hit. Boogerd walked twice.
Mady Wachal struck out 11 batters in the second game and only allowed a pair of hits including a solo homer plus one walk. She also helped her own cause by getting a hit, two RBIs, and a run.
Bailey Finck had a trio of hits including a pair of doubles, batted in two runs, stole two bases, and scored twice. Miley VanDeVere had two hits including a double, batted in two runs, and scored twice. Mady Wachal had one hit, two RBIs, and scored once. Brielle Tufvesson had a pair of hits including a double and scored once. Kinley VanDeVere walked twice, stole five bases, and scored three runs. Hadley Wachal cashed in her only at-bat with a two-run single. Jess Dvorak batted in a run. Alexa Hanson drew a walk.
The 6-1 Huskies visit Windom Area on Monday. We will have that doubleheader on KKOJ and Explore Live Video.
JCC GIRLS 4TH, BOYS 7TH IN WORTHINGTON
Naiya Ayers led the Jackson County Central girls track and field team to fourth place and James Atura led the boys to seventh at the Worthington Invitational on Thursday.
Ayers won the 3200 Meter run with a personal record for the JCC girls. Amiree Elias Galvan followed her in third place. Natalia Botello-Ramos finished runner-up 100 Meters, 200 Meters with the eighth-best time in school history, and the 4×200 Relay along with Zoey Hall, Stevie Untiedt, and Allison Luebben. Luebben also finished second in the Long Jump and sixth in the 100 Meters. Untiedt took second in the 800 Meters. Zadi Farmer was third in the Long Jump with a PR and in the Triple Jump as well. Luebben, Hall, Farmer, and Addie Fricke took sixth in the 4×100 Relay.
The JCC girls collected 80 points to tie for fourth place among 13 teams. Hills-Beaver Creek finished on top of the girls team scores.
Atura finished second place with a season best in the 110-Meter Hurdles for the JCC boys.
Grant Ambrose finished third place in the 300-Meter Hurdles. Ambrose and Ever Munoz tied for third in the Pole Vault. Ambrose, Dezmynd Tupper, Kayden Mitchell, and David Botello-Ramos took fourth in the 4×800 Relay with a season best. Kristoph Olsem was third in the High Jump. Tupper was fifth in the 400 Meters. Kayden Mitchell was sixth in the 800 Meters.
The JCC boys collected 49 team points for seventh place. Murray County Central was the top boys team.
Full results are available online for the teams and events.
The Huskies are headed to the Bob Nangle Relays in Pipestone on Tuesday.
HUSKIES READY TO GET BACK HOME
The Jackson County Central baseball team lost to Redwood Valley in five innings on Thursday.
The Cardinals scored two runs in the first inning, 11 in the third, and another trio in the fourth.
Kasey Storm hit a double with Haiden Warmka and Kash Gilbert each adding one hit. Jace Jorgenson walked twice. Carson Kolander drew a walk.
Carson Doescher pitched 2 ⅔ with 12 runs allowed and two of them earned on nine hits plus a trio of strikeouts and one walk. Joshua Thompson got the final out of the third with a walk and then a strikeouts. Kolander surrendered three earned runs on three hits in one inning. He also had a trio of strikeouts and a pair of walks.
The 3-5 Huskies return home for the first time this month on Friday against the 3-3 Cardinals.
Coverage begins at 4:45 on KKOJ and Explore Live Video.
The pregame on Friday will feature special recognition of the victims and survivors of the recent tragic accident. JCC will also honor Mike Wierson for his years of service to the program. Wierson and former Huskies pitcher Brett Rossow, who is one of the accident survivors, will both throw out ceremonial first pitches prior to the game.