HS softball: New Prairie Cougars on a roll of late
New Prairie softball coach Derek Hicks believes his talented team is starting to play better.
He still thinks there is more in the tank though for the defending Class 3A state champions.
The Cougars, ranked No. 2 in Class 3A, boasted a seven-game winning streak going into a Northern Indiana Conference game at Bremen Monday night.
More: Sizing up New Prairie's chances of repeating as Indiana 3A state softball champions
"We are starting to play better overall," said Hicks via text message. "We’re experimenting with different things and trying to see who fits where the best both offensively and defensively. It seems to be coming together so I’m pretty satisfied right now. I also think we can still get much better."
The Cougars were 5-1 in the NIC after downing Washington 10-0 last week. Five pitchers, including star junior Ava Geyer, combined to throw a no hitter with 12 strikeouts in the league win. Geyer had a home run and six RBI to lead the offense. Geyer is 9-1 in the circle with just 19 hits and four earned runs allowed in 50.2 innings through this past weekend. She has 113 strikeouts and 12 walks and is also one of her team's top hitters.
More: New Prairie's Ava Geyer wins Tribune 2024 Spring Sports Preseason Player of the Year vote
"Ava is as solid as they come," Hicks stated. "She steps it up when she needs to. She’s so relaxed out there. Not much phases her. We put a lot on her shoulders and she takes care of business. Her pitching has been phenomenal. Her and Maddie Gilpin are really starting to click together. They’re always talking, adjusting, and figuring things out. I’m loving their focus right now. Ava hasn’t been as good with the bat as what she expects of herself most of the year but has homered the last two games and is starting to find her groove there too."
"I still think we are one of the top teams in the state and with Ava pitching will have a chance to win against anyone we play. It’s exciting to get to watch these girls play. It’s a great group on and off the field and I’m very proud to be their coach."
The Cougars have outscored their first 12 foes 93-31. They have 26 doubles and six home runs with Geyer, senior Kendra Willoughby, senior Maddie Gilpin and junior Ella Chelminiak leading the way at the dish.
"A couple of pleasant surprises have been Ella Chelminiak tearing it up in the three spot and Maddie Gilpin in the five spot. I knew they had the ability offensively but they’re both hitting over .500 which is very nice. They’ve both been extremely solid defensively as well."
Hicks, whose team went 31-5 in 2023, still sees room for improvement with the state tournament looming on the horizon. Sectional play starts May 20 with the Cougars competing in the Class 3A sectional at Marian.
"We are scoring some runs, but we’ve left a lot of runners on base," Hicks noted. "We need to get those runs in and also move runners better by executing with our short game more consistently.
"We’ve made some base running mistakes, so we need to improve on that and cut down completely on the mental mistakes and errors. We have been working on that and focusing better lately. These girls do listen and I’m sure will figure things out and fix it."
Penn softball honors Clay ahead of closure
Penn sits in the top spot in the NIC as the lone unbeaten left in league play. The Class 4A No. 3 Kingsmen improved to 5-0 with a 13-1 win over Clay. Penn still has NIC games left versus both New Prairie and Saint Joseph. The Kingsmen host St. Joe May 6 and host New Prairie May 13.
The Kingsmen, led by classy coach Beth Zachary, did a very nice thing in their game at Clay on April 24. Penn gave the Clay program a photo of their field and a jar for them to collect infield dirt in off their field as a pair of keepsakes. Clay High School will close at the end of the school year.
Adams softball picks up nice win
Saint Joseph dropped its first NIC game in a 7-1 loss to Adams last week. The Class 4A No. 4 Huskies won the NIC title in 2023 at 11-0.
St. Joe ace Berkley Zache fired a no hitter in a 6-0 NIC win over Bremen. The junior had 20 strikeouts in the victory.
Softball sensational seven
Note: Records are through Saturday games
Penn (14-5, 5-0 NIC): The Kingsmen remained unbeaten in league play with a 13-1 win over Clay. Logan Rumble continued to shine as the super sophomore had a home run and six RBI. Izzi Hanna had three hits and Ava Zachary two hits and three RBI. Junior Liv Signorino fired a three-hitter with nine strikeouts.
Saint Joseph (14-2 (5-1 NIC): The Huskies beat Hanover Central 6-4 and Lowell 7-0 Saturday. St. Joe had 25 hits in the two wins with Kenadie Schrock having two home runs and four RBI and Riley Zache one home run and four RBI.
New Prairie (10-2 (5-1 NIC): The Cougars beat Washington to stay in a tie for second place in the NIC.
Jimtown (9-4, 5-1 NIC): The Jimmies dropped their first league game with a 15-11 loss to Bremen. They then went 1-1 in their own invitational Saturday, beating Rochester 4-3 and losing to Peru 2-1. Leo beat Peru 11-0 in the championship game.
Mishawaka (9-4, 5-0 NLC): The defending league champion Cavemen remained unbeaten in NLC action with a 9-1 win over NorthWood. Lily St. Clair had four hits, Khloe Hershey three and Cassie Connell a three-run double as the Cavemen won their sixth straight game. Their league game versus Northridge on April 26 was suspended in the third inning due to weather.
Riley (10-6, 4-1 NIC): The Wildcats blanked NIC foe Marian 10-0. Riley then lost a pair to Northridge, 6-5 and 7-2, on Saturday.
Bremen (9-4, 3-3 NIC): The Class 2A No. 5 Lions beat Kouts 11-7 Saturday. Mickie Shively had two home runs and Delainey Neher one for the Lions. Sophia Tikalsky had three home runs for Knox.
Others to watch: South Central (12-1, 3-0 PCC), Northridge (8-6, 5-1 NLC):
This article originally appeared on South Bend Tribune: Ava Geyer is leading the way for defending state champion New Prairie
