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Chisago Lakes 5

Big Lake 0

Talk about picking the right time to make their move. Winners off two straight, the Chisago Lakes softball team made it three in a row after defeating Big Lake 5-0 Monday, May 16. The win improved the ‘Cats conference mark to 7-4 on the year. It was also their fourth conference win in a row.

Things came together on both sides of the ball. First, on the mound, Whitney Slagerman got the Wildcats off to a good start with great pitching. Slagerman didn’t just hold the Hornets at bay, she dominated them, allowing just one hit through the first six innings, that came in the second inning. Other than that, the junior hurler was in control the entire game, meaning that all Chisago’s offense needed to do was score some runs.

They did that in the bottom of the third. Scoreless at that point, a walk and error put two runners on with two outs for senior Rachel Nelson. Nelson did the rest, knocking them both in with a double, making the score 2-0.

Two innings later, more offense as the ‘Cats improved their lead to 4-0. This time, with runners at second and third, Ariel Novak came through with the clutch hit, scoring both runners with a single.

The Wildcats put the finishing touches on things in the sixth. Katie Reed doubled to start the inning followed by a single by Novak and a wild pitch. Reed came across to score on the errant throw, completing the scoring. Slagerman then finished the Hornets off in the top of the seventh. After Big Lake put runners on first and third with two outs, Slagerman got the Hornets to fly out to end it. She finished the game allowing two hits and two walks while striking out two. On offense, Novak had three hits and two RBI’s. In addition, Reed delivered two hits and scored two runs.

“We’ve beaten Big Lake and St. Michael, the top two teams in the conference and in their section,” said Steve Fisher, Chisago Lakes head softball coach. “Also, we beat Milaca and they’re right up there in their section also. Big Lake and St. Michael were huge wins, and both of them came on the road. Whitney (Slagerman) is beginning to find more strikeouts, she’s getting the ball over the plate and getting a lot of ground ball outs. At the plate, Katie Reed, Rachel Nelson (senior) and Ariel Novak have been getting the bat on the ball pretty consistently. That’s a big part of it. We’ve just been able to put some things together. I hope it can continue.”

Chisago Lakes 14

Mora 1 (five innings)

It was a sloppy game, so sloppy that there were twice as many walks as hits. Actually, more than twice as much. Simply put, it was an ugly game against Mora last Wednesday on the road. Still, a win is a win. Speaking of that, the victory was the Wildcats eighth conference win of the season and their fifth straight conference win.

The Wildcats scored early and often, plating two runs in the first, four in the second, four in the third and four more in the fifth. As for Mora, the Mustangs managed just one run against Slagerman in the third inning. Other than that, the junior pitcher was next to perfect, striking out 11 in the game, allowing just two hits.

“Not many hits to too many walks,” remarked Fisher. “We had three big innings, the second, third and fifth, scoring four runs in each of those innings. It was tough to play after Big Lake, it was hard to adjust to the pitches.”

Katie Reed and Nicole Oehme each finished the game with two hits. As a team, Chisago Lakes registered seven hits and walked 15 times.

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