(Atlantic) Lila Wiederstein delivered a walk-off single in the bottom of the eighth inning, lifting Atlantic to a victory over Ballard in a non-Conference on Friday in Atlantic. Atlantic’s win pushed its record to 5-0 to close out the first week of the 2026 softball campaign.
The Trojans scored six runs on eleven hits. London Kirchhoff went 3-4 at the plate, scored a run, and drove in a run. Wiederstein went 2-4, and Jillian Saathoff belted a two-run homer. Brynn Lamp pitched the win for the Trojans allowing five runs on seven hits, six strikeouts, and two walks. Ballard scored five runs on seven hits. Madeline Schonhorst went 2-4 with a double, a two run homer, and scored two runs, and Afton Holmes went two-for-three at plate with a single, a double, and one RBI.
Schonhorst sparked the Bombers’ offense with a leadoff double in the top of the first inning and later scored on an error to give the visitors a 1-0 lead. The Bombers added another run in the second when Maddie Sievers singled and Holmes followed with an RBI double to make it 2-0.
Atlantic answered with four runs on three hits in the bottom of the third inning. Lila Wiederstein drew a walk, while Zoey Kirchhoff, Alivia Knuth and London Kirchhoff each delivered singles during the rally. Meanwhile, Brynn Lamp found her rhythm in the circle, retiring eight consecutive batters and held the Bombers scoreless through the sixth inning.
The Trojans added an insurance run in the sixth when Saathoff crushed a line-drive home run over the left-field fence, extending Atlantic’s led to 5-2 heading into the seventh inning. Ballard showed its’ resiliency scoring three runs on two hits, to tie the game at 5-5.
Ballard kept Atlantic off the scoreboard in the bottom of the seventh inning, forcing extra innings. In the top of the eighth, Kenna Zimmerman opened the frame with a single, but Brynn Lamp quickly regained control, retiring the next three batters to strand the runner and keep the game tied.
The Trojans capitalized on their opportunity in the bottom half of the inning. Kinsley Johnson and Jillian Saathoff both drew walks to put two runners on with one out, bringing Lila Wiederstein to the plate. Wiederstein wasted little time, ripping the first pitch she saw into deep left field. Johnson raced home from second base with the winning run as Atlantic secured a dramatic 6-5 walk-off victory.
