For the week of May 1 - 7, 2002

Wood River Express keeps rolling along

Softball team (14-5) stays hot at home

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They’ve still got the memory of a narrow one-run home victory over the Buhl Tribe to keep them honest, but Wood River High School softball players kept chugging along with three home triumphs last week.

Mollie Meyers tracks down a fly ball for Wood River. Express photo by David N. Seelig

In Sawtooth Central Idaho Conference home action, Wood River swept the Filer Wildcats 13-3 and 14-2 Thursday, then breezed to an 18-2 victory over the Declo Hornets Saturday at the South Valley Sports Complex diamond in Hailey.

Wood River (14-5, 6-0 league) completely dominated against Filer and Declo—outscoring them 45-7 and out-hitting the visitors 39-14. The results stretched the Hailey winning streak to eight games and improved the Wolverine home record to 6-2.

All coach Chris Cey’s Wolverines needed was a league win over Kimberly (9-6) Tuesday afternoon on the Hailey field to nail down the top seed in the five-team SCIC tourney.

Ashley Nilsen makes the catch in front of the Declo dugout during Saturday’s game. Express photo by David N. Seelig

In the SCIC action (the first game counting in twinbills) Wood River stands at 6-0, Buhl 4-2, Kimberly 3-2, Filer 2-5 and Declo 0-6.

Wood River travels to Buhl (13-4) Saturday, May 4 for an 11 a.m. doubleheader that ends the SCIC regular-season slate of games. The teams played a dandy set of games April 20—host Wood River winning the first 4-3 and the second 8-5.

Next Tuesday Wendell comes to South Valley Sports Complex for a 4 p.m. non-league twinbill. Then the SCIC 3A tournament opens Friday, May 10, with Wood River most likely having the top seed and a home game.

 

Big wins over Filer, Declo

Senior Amanda Engel (6-2) handled Filer (6-12) with a five-hitter Thursday and walked nobody. She struck out five. The Wildcat pitchers surrendered 12 hits including three homers and walked five.

The big batter in the 13-3 run-rule victory was B.J. Adams (double, triple, 2-run HR and 4 RBI). Joni Chatterton (2 hits including a 2-run HR) drove home three and Laurel Williams scored three runs.

Ashley Nilsen added two triples, Aubrey Kirtley hit a solo homer and Aspen Wenglikowski added two hits.

Kirtley was nearly as good as she threw a four-hitter in the 14-2 nightcap. She whiffed two and walked none. Meanwhile, Williams (3 hits) singled, doubled, tripled and drove home three Wolverines.

The first six Wolverines reached base in the five-run second inning. Ashley Washburn (2 runs) singled, Megan Lyons walked, Mollie Meyers (2 runs) was beaned, Adams (2 hits, 2 runs) singled, Kirtley (2 hits, 3 runs) added a fielder’s choice and Williams ripped a two-run single.

Nilsen’s two-run single sparked a five-run third and Wood River breezed. Chatterton went 3-for-3.

Kirtley (6-2) picked up the win with a five-hitter in Saturday’s 18-2 triumph over first-year softball program Declo. A seven-run second and 11-run fourth let Wood River players go to the prom early.

Drilling three hits apiece in the 14-hit attack were Chatterton (3 runs, HR), Kirtley (3 runs) and Williams (3 runs, 4 RBI). Engel’s two-run single fueled the big inning, and Nilsen (2 runs, 3 RBI) contributed.

·  WOLVERINE NOTES—Wood River is 11-0 in all its SCIC games and has outscored its league foes 158-47…In all games the Wolverines have scored 222 runs (11.7) and have yielded only 98 (5.2)….They have swept five twinbills….Wood River’s six-season home mark is 46-22…Last week’s results clinched Hailey’s fourth winning season in five years.

School records are in sight. The current eight-game winning streak before Tuesday’s Kimberly games is a threat to the school-record 11-game winning streak during the 20-7 campaign of 1999. The most Wood River wins in a single season happened in 1997, a 21-9 team.

 

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