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RED OAK — Creston sophomore Chloe Hagle turned on a pitch in the fifth inning of Tuesday’s Hawkeye 10 softball game.
The ball jumped high and far off the bat, carrying deep into an early Iowa summer’s night and over the fence for her first varsity home run.
Hagle and the Panthers pounced on pitches they liked all night long as Creston routed Red Oak 11-1 in five innings.
“It was really exciting,” she said. “I felt like I squared it up right. It was an inside pitch, so I drove it to the right side.”
Hagle drove in three with the blast and helped secure the early night as Creston scored five in the fifth.
“It was nice to see the kids do a good job of being patient,” said Creston coach Mike McCabe. “They weren’t afraid to get two strikes and they still had the confidence.”
Hagle finished the game with a nice sliding catch on a pop out behind the plate to end the game in the fifth with a runner at second base.
“I didn’t have time to get my helmet off so I just had to go get it.”
The Panthers moved to 14-4 in the Hawkeye 10 with a dominating win.
“Coach said to get our sassy pants on that’s what we did,” Hagle said. “We came out here. We showed them what we could do.”
Josie Sickels started the game with a base hit and later scored as part of a two-run first inning.
“Josie set the tone there with a big base hit to start it off,” McCabe said. “It was nice to get two runs up there early. That relaxes everybody.”
Sickels added to the offense in the fourth when she turned on a pitch for a three-run home run.
“She’s a strong little kid,” McCabe said. “She hit the ball hard and it stayed fair long enough.”
Alli Thomsen had three hits and drove in two. Lexie Little had three hits and drove in a run. Jami Sickles and Saige Rice each had a hit and scored twice.
Creston started the week with as good of a start as it could have asked for.
“We told the kids in the circle beforehand that you’ve got to bring the same attitude and intent you had Saturday,” McCabe said. “We were focused and ready in those games. They’re just very good teams. We have to bring that same attitude and intent to all games from here on out.”
Panther pitcher Taylor Briley dominated in the circle. She allowed only two hits, one earned run, walked two and struck out seven.
Creston, 19-10, is back on the diamond Thursday at Atlantic in a Hawkeye 10 Conference doubleheader.
“We’ve got to think about our next game. We’ve got Atlantic,” Hagle said.
The JV won 14-0.
Creston scored nine in the first and five in the second.
Mattie Wheeler was 3-for-3 with two RBIS. Morghan Frey drove in three. Morgan Shawler was 2-for-2 with three runs batted in.
Creston 11, Red Oak 1 (5)
R H E
Crest 203 15 x — 11 14 0
RO 000 10 x — 1 2 3
Cr: Taylor Briley 7K 2BB and Chloe Hagle. RO: Zoey Welter 0K 0BB. W — Briley. L— Welter. HR — Cr: Josie Sickels 1, Chloe Hagle 1. 3B — Taylor Briley. 2B — Alli Thomsen 3, Lexie Little 2. RBI — Cr: Josie Sickels 3, Chloe Hagle 3, Alli Thomsen 2, Taylor Briley 1, Lexie Little 1, Jami Sickels 1. RO: Sarah Behrens 1. Multiple hitters — Cr: Alli Thomsen 3, Lexie Little 3, Josie Sickels 2.