SLOAN — Gehlen Catholic had only three hits for the game but they came in succession with two outs in the first inning and produced two runs that would carry the Lady Jays to a 2-1 victory over No. 13 Westwood Monday night in the 1A Regional finals at Sloan. Alyssa Kolbeck started the rally with a double to right-center and Katie Peters followed with a double to the same right-center gap. Sydney Livermore drilled a single up the middle to score Peters for a 2-0 lead. Gehlen would have only one more base runner for the remainder of the game as senior standout Katelyn Martian retired the final 15 batters of the game following a third inning error. Freshman Rylee Schnepf was every bit Martian’s equal, escaping a bases-loaded jam in the first before giving up a run on Westwood’s first two hits in the third. The Rebels threatened again in the sixth with a two-out double by Brenna Pike followed by a single by Aryanna DeRoin. Westwood attempted to score the runner from second base but a perfect throw to the plate by left fielder Tiffany Woerdehoff cut down the potential tying run to preserve the 2-1 lead. Schnepf retired the side in order in the seventh, finishing with a four-hitter and eight strikeouts. The Lady Jays are headed to the 1A State Tournament in Fort Dodge next Monday where they will play top-rated Collins-Maxwell (25-1) at 11 a.m.. It will be their second softball trip, their first since 2012. Gehlen is 21-and-9 and winners of seven straight.
Katie Peters is about to hit the approaching softball
