Council Bluffs, Iowa
After the Reivers 2020 season was cut short, IWCC has hit the field this Spring with purpose. Iowa Western has posted a 4-0 mark in true road games and is 3-1 in neutral-site affairs. Winners of five straight overall, Friday afforded the Reivers the chance to build on another streak, home wins. Head Coach Ben Greer's squad had won 10 straight at the friendly confines of the Reiver Sports Complex dating back to the 2018-19 season and after North Platte and State Fair rolled into town, that number now stands at 14 after a pair of doubleheader sweeps.
In the home opener, the Reivers tagged visiting North Platte CC for 10 runs in the third inning to up their advantage to 12-0 as IWCC won to start the weekend on a high note. Mattilyn Reiling, batting from the lead-off spot, drove in three runs in a 2-3 performance that included a triple. The freshman also scored a pair of runs as IWCC smacked 10 hits in the contest. Katriana Bain and Myla Beckstrom joined Reiling with multiple hits and Jessica Strandlund made it a quartet of Reivers to scored a pair of runs. Brook Melnychuk ran her record to 4-1, allowing only a single hit while striking out 10.
The Reivers spread the run-scoring out over four different innings in game two. Bain homered, driving in four with another pair of hits and Aujenai Gregory also went yard, joining Karlie Chonis with multiple RBI in the 10-2 victory, six-inning victory. Hannah Smart pitched 3.1 innings but was relieved by Melnychuk before the Reivers went ahead in the bottom of the fourth. The pair combined to strike out nine Knights' batters as Melnychuk moved to 5-1 with the victory and IWCC improved to 9-1 overall.
Saturday, the Reivers welcomed State Fair to town for more twin bill action. The Reivers turned a low-scoring affair into a lopsided win with four runs in the bottom of the fifth to extend the final margin against the Roadrunners to 7-0. Kat Bain and A.J. Gregory each drove in a pair of runs, while Bain, Matti Reiling, and Taya Opheim all doubled in the Reivers' 10th win of the season. It was Melnychuk going the distance in the win, striking out 10 for the second consecutive game as the starting pitcher.
Game two of the day saw the Reivers rally from behind to earn a 6-3 victory. Smart struck out four before SFCC's Ellie Eckert hit a three-run triple to chase her after just 1.2 innings of work. Melnychuk would come in to shut down State Fair as the Reivers rallied for four in the fourth and an insurance run in the fifth. Melynchuk earned all four wins for Iowa Western and struck out 33 total batters. A.J. Gregory picked up another pair of RBIs and six different Reivers scored runs in the come from behind win.
IWCC extended their winning streak to nine games this season is now 11-1 overall and travels to Miami, Oklahoma for a pair of games against Northeast Oklahoma A&M on Saturday.
Follow the Reivers on social media:
Twitter | https://twitter.com/ReiverSoftball
Facebook | https://www.facebook.com/IWCCsoftball
Instagram | https://www.instagram.comreiversoftball
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