Hastings is state championship bound
HASTINGS – Nothing could wipe the smile off Hastings coach Blake Marquardt's face.
"It's so exciting for the girls. We talk to parents and you talk to fans and they kind of ask you 'what's your approach' and my biggest approach is just stay out of their way, have fun, watch them play and hopefully I don't get in their way," Marquardt said. "That's what we did today, we try to put them in the position to win and then they had to do it."
Hastings entered day two in the driver's seat and one win away from punching its ticket to Omaha. First it had to wait and see who it would play and then it had to execute. Hastings defeated Blair 10-5 in front of its home crowd and advanced to the state championship for the first time since 2021.
"I'm excited, I'm ready. I think our team's ready. We played really well all around and we've been preparing for this moment all year," Madison Wenzl said.
Before Hastings could think about Monday and a trip to Omaha it had to get past Blair who it had played twice in the regular season and split 1-1. It also had to do so against strikeout machine Brooke Janning of Blair.
"We've seen her so many times in the past two years and we knew coming in what she was going to throw and and hit before and we were prepared for her," Wenzl said.
The Tigers jumped on the Bears right away in the top of the first inning and scored three runs.
"It was surprising to me, I mean she's one of the best pitchers (Janning) in Class B, like she's dominant. And she showed that throughout the game that she can be dominant," Marquardt said.
In the third inning Wenzl, a senior, stepped up and hit a 3-run home run to give the Tigers a 6-0 lead.
Blair battled back and scored two on a Regan Blattert 2-run home run.
Hastings freshman Ella Tinsman came up in a big spot in the fifth inning and crushed a grand slam to left center field. The Hastings faithful erupted as they watched the ball fly over the fans sitting beyond the fence.
"She attacked that one early," Marquardt said with a smile still plastered on his face.
Janning wouldn't let Tinsman be the only pitcher to go deep and answered in the bottom half of the inning with a 2-run home run.
In the biggest game of her young career Tinsman delivered from the circle and finished with seven strikeouts.
"She kept her composure even though they were hitting balls, putting balls in play," Marquardt said. "You try to talk to your pitchers 'when the wind's blowing out in the big stage there's going to be home runs, there's going to be hits, you're not going to throw a no-hitter.' I know that's what she wants to do, but you're not going to, but regardless stay (the) course, stay true to the process."
Now Hastings has three days to prepare for the state championship. Hastings will play Beatrice at 3:30 p.m., Monday at Connie Claussen Field in Omaha for a chance to win its first state softball title.
"I'm pretty confident, it's going to be a tough game, but I'm really excited to see what happens," Tinsman said.
Hastings St. Cecilia's season comes to a close
There wasn't a dry eye. St. Cecilia fell to Ashland-Greenwood 16-12, the loss that ended its season.
After the post game speeches and with tears running down the Hawkettes faces, many, many, many hugs were had.
"There's not a dry eye for a reason and that's because this program, it's a family and they take such pride in their work and in each other too. It's a special bond that these girls have," St. Cecilia coach Ryan Ohnoutka said. "When it comes to an end that's why it's so tough to handle, because there won't be a practice tomorrow, there's no game tomorrow."
St. Cecilia came in as the No. 1 seed in the Class C tournament and was in the losers bracket after an 11-2 loss to Douglas County West. As it's been proven, the seeds go out the window once the first pitch is thrown.
The game entered the fifth inning tied at four but then Ashland-Greenwood scored eight runs. It was enough to end the game had St. Cecilia not scored, but the Hawkettes showed their fight until the end. They scored four runs in the bottom half of the inning and cut its deficit in half.
Ashland-Greenwood continued to score in the sixth and seventh innings. St. Cecilia couldn't keep up but it never stopped swinging.
"That's a credit to these girls," Ohnoutka said. "I'm so proud to coach these girls, they're outstanding."
It was a home run show and the game had seven home runs, three by Ashland-Greenwood and four for St. Cecilia.
In their final high school game, Chloe Rossow and Isabella Kvols both hit home runs.
Hastings 10, Blair 5
HAST 3030400-10 10 1
BL 000 320 0-5 6 4
WP-Tinsman. LP-Janning. HR-HAST: Tinsman, Wenzl. HR-BL: Janning, Blattert. 2B-HAST: Beck, Laux.
Ashland-Greenwood 16, St. Cecilia 12
WP-Fisher. LP-Kissinger. HR-AG: Dill (2), Fisher. HR-STC: Bauer (2), C. Rossow, Kvols. 2B-AG: Hasse, Sargent, Strode. 2B-STC: Bohlke (2), Musalek, A. Rossow.
