(Oakland, IA) — Riverside will try to keep the slipper off the Cinderella Stanton softball team and go to the state tournament in a Class 1A Regional Final tonight, coverage on KSOM.
The Viqueens have had a magical run through Region #6, upsetting East Union 14-10 in the first round, outslugging #2 seed Fremont Mills in the regional quarterfinals and then knocking off Lenox 11-2 in the semis.
The Bulldogs have rolled in their two playoff games — 11-1 over Lamoni and then beating Mount Ayr 6-0 behind Peyton Schafer’s no hitter — the freshman walked just one and Head Coach Lacie Patterson said she was hitting her spots and the defense behind her made all the plays
The offense continues to be balanced from top to bottom but it is Junior Madison Kelley leading the way hitting .471 with 4 HR and 44 RBI. She hit .287 last season so the average has jumped nearly 200 points and Patterson says she has come a long way in a short amount of time
Stanton is led by Senior Bree Mitchell who is hitting .500 with 6 HR and 39 RBI and in the circle has a season ERA of 5.62 but threw well against Lenox, allowing only 2 unearned runs on 4 hits in 5 innings.
Riverside, meanwhile, is in their first Regional Final since 2009 which is the last time they went to the state tournament. Riverside has the better record than Stanton, they have the home field advantage but Patterson says they have to relax and play their game
Stanton is 12-10, #5 Riverside is 23-3, game time is 7pm, coverage starts at 6:45 on KSOM.
Complete Interview with Head Coach Lacie Patterson
