Schultz, Eagles top Waseca

By BOB VARMETTE

Journal Sports Writer

NEW ULM -- Didn't know. Didn't care. Didn't matter.

The Waseca Bluejays spoiled the no-hit bid of Cassie Schultz. But Schultz got the spoils.

Schultz took a no-hitter into the top of the seventh inning, lost it, but got the victory as the New Ulm Eagles edged Waseca 1-0 Thursday in South Central Conference softball at Harman Park.

"I didn't know how well I was going to do today," Schultz, a sophomore right-hander for the Eagles, said. "I just wanted to get out of there with the win. We played well, we deserved the game."

Schultz (6-2) was unaware she was one out away from the no-hitter when the Bluejays' Sarah Korb singled up the middle. Schultz had retired 18 batters in a row after walking Kari O'Brien with one out in the first.

"The kids certainly played well defensively behind Cassie," New Ulm coach Jim Pearson said. "Cassie had a nice ball game. She mixed up her pitches well. Shelly (Gramentz) called a good game behind the plate and the kids played tough 'D.'"

The win was an important one for the Eagles.

"If we had lost this one, Waseca jumps into a second-place tie with us," Pearson said. "We want to come back and give Blue Earth another loss, and if we had lost tonight that would have diminished our chances of getting a tie for the conference lead if we beat Blue Earth next week."

Schultz struck out four and walked one in facing only two batters more than the minimum. Schultz was the model of pitching efficiency. She needed only three pitches to retire Waseca (9-9, 6-4 SCC) in the fifth.

Staying ahead in the count against nearly every batter, Schultz knew how to rely on her defense, too. Allison Boddy took away a potential Waseca hit when Tara Boyum lined to right in the second, and then threw out Korb at first in the fourth inning when a grounder skidded just beyond the reach of New Ulm second baseman Meghan Reedy.

Boyum was victimized again in the fifth when Reedy backhanded a sharp grounder, preventing a single. In the sixth, Erin Morris lined the first pitch from Schultz back to the mound and the ball bounced off the glove of Schultz, but Reedy backed up her pitcher and threw out Morris.

"It's nice to have a good defense behind you," Schultz said. "The whole team did so well defensively."

The loss spoiled a four-hitter by Waseca's Lindsay Dodd (2-3), who also went the distance. Dodd struck out one and walked only one.

"That's the second time that's happened this year," Waseca coach Lori Miller said. "She was our pitcher when we lost 2-0 to New Ulm earlier this year. Lindsay did a real nice job. She threw real nice pitches."

Miller was also impressed by Schultz.

"She did a really nice job," Miller said. "She's a good pitcher. She spots the ball around the plate and she has good command of her pitches."

It was almost as tough for New Ulm (10-3, 9-1) to get baserunners. Only Boddy got more than one hit for the Eagles.

Boddy led off the bottom of the first with a single to left and scored the Eagles' only run on Gramentz's one-out single. Boddy finished the game 2-for-3.

"(Dodd) had pretty good speed," Boddy said. "She was mixing it up well with her changeup. That kept us off-balance."

The only other Eagle to get a hit was Brittany Gorres with a one-out single in the second. Gorres stole second and went to third on a ground out, but got stranded at third.

Dodd also gave New Ulm a baserunner in the third on a two-out walk to Gramentz. But Jenny Brandel popped up to Waseca third baseman Katie Zika to end the inning.

The Eagles also got runners aboard in the fourth and fifth innings, but neither got past first. Gorres was erased attempting to steal second in the fourth and Boddy's second single went for naught when Emily Hamann popped up in foul territory to Zika.

"We got enough (offense) just to win the game," Pearson said. "We had a couple of opportunities. We needed another base hit and we would have had a couple more runs."

New Ulm will play in a tournament in New Ulm at 11 a.m. and 1 p.m. Saturday.

WASECA 000 000 0 -- 0 1 2

NEW ULM 100 000 x -- 1 4 0

Dodd and Wood. Schultz and Gramentz. W--Schultz, 6-2. L--Dodd, 2-3. HRs--None.