The Kenyon-Wanamingo Knight softball team won a game and lost a game in St. Peter Tuesday night to end their season.  The number 16 seed played the #17 seed Gibbon-Fairfax-Winthrop Thunderbirds and won 9-3 before losing to Class 2A #9 ranked St. Peter 10-0 in 5 innings.  In the first game junior pitcher Emma Berquam nearly tied her sister Kailee for the school record for strikeouts in a game.  Emma had 16 and the record is 17.  Berquam threw 146 pitches, 87 for strikes, got a blood blister from a ball hitting her left hand pinky finger during a bunt attempt and was just three outs away from a shutout before appearing to get a bit tired in the 7th.

The Knights scored a run in the second when the lone senior on the team Brittney Woods hit a solid single to center.  After two outs Woods was at third base and scored on a wild pitch with a head first slide into home plate.  She came up with a face full of chalk and got a chuckle from her teammates in the dugout but her team was up 1-0.  Kenyon-Wanamingo added 7 runs on 7 hits in the fourth inning to take a commanding lead.  Woods opened the inning with another single and also stroked a 2 RBI double later in the inning because 12 batters came to the plate.  After the Woods hit, sophomore center fielder Karlie Hodgman hammered a 0-2 pitch to left center for a double placing runners at second and third with no outs.  Sophomore right fielder Nora Woock then smacked a 2 RBI single, Berquam was walked during her blood blister at bat, Kailie Bauer singled and sophomore catcher Sydney Burow was hit by a pitch on a 1-2 count to load the bases.

The Thunderbirds got two outs with throws to the plate during the next two at bats fore freshman first baseman Hailey Lerfald stroked an RBI single, Woods a 2 RBI double and Hodgman a single.

Kenyon-Wanamingo added a run in the bottom of the 6th inning when sophomore second baseman Morgyn Schaefer walked to open the inning and stole second base.  Lerfald was walked.  Woods popped out to second base.  Schaefer advanced to third and scored on a ground out to third off the bat of Hodgman.  The third baseman immediately threw to first and the first baseman tried to get Schaefer at the plate but the throw was too late and at the time it was 9-0.

In the second game St. Peter junior pitcher Mackenzie Brey threw a perfect game over five innings.  Brey struck out 7 and did get a little help from her teammates with some nice catches of at 'em balls.

After a scoreless first inning Brey walked to open the bottom of the second.  Her courtesy runner 8th grader Mckenna Van Zee stole second and gained third base on a wild pitch.  Following a pop out Mckenna Reese had an RBI single on an 0-2 count and Olivia Stevens hit a single. The number nine Saints hitter recorded the second out of the inning before sophomore catcher Allie McCabe jumped on a pitch on the outside corner and lifted it to right field scoring two runs.

St. Peter added three more runs in the third inning.  Following a walk of the number four hitter in the order to start the inning, Brey was walked again.  Woods tagged a runner trying to advance to third on a grounder for the first out.  Junior right fielder Mckenna Reese just missed a home run on a 1-1 count and collected a 2 RBI triple, scoring on a error on the play and it was 6-0 St. Peter.

The Saints marched three more runs across home plate in the fourth inning.  The first batter flew out to center.  Then back to back walks were recorded before a 0-2 count RBI single by number four hitter senior Alexandra Zachman followed by  a 2 RBI double by Brey to make it 9-0 after four innings.

The game ended in the bottom of the fifth inning when the number 8 batter in the St. Peter order sophomore Olivia Stevens hit a single and sophomore Shelby Paul followed with a double to knock Stevens in with the 10th run of the game.

Brey threw 62 pitches during her perfect 5 innings with 43 strikes and four three ball counts on batters.

Berquam tallied 110 pitches, 58 strikes in the second game, gave up 8 hits, struck out 3 and walked 7 batters.  4 of the 7 scored.

The junior right handed pitcher threw a total of 249 pitches, 145 strikes in 12 innings of pitching with 12 hits allowed, 11 walks and 19 strikeouts.

Kenyon-Wanamingo finished their season 2-15 with both wins against Gibbon-Fairfax-Winthrop.

St. Peter will host #8 seed New Richland-Hartland-Ellendale-Geneva Thursday after the Panthers collected a 5-0 lead over Lake Crystal-Wellcome Memorial.

In other Section 2AA games #5 seed Cannon Falls blanked Sibley East 5-0 and will travel to #4 seed Fairmont to play a Cardinal team coming off a 5-1 win over St.Clair/Loyola.  #3 seed LeSueur-Henderson downed Waseca 11-1 in six innings and will host Belle Plaine 5-4 winners over Medford.

#2 seed Jordan edged #15 Blue Earth Area 2-0 and will entertain #10 seed Tri-City United Thursday.  The Titans upset #7 seed and Gopher Conference champion Maple River 1-0 to end their season.

Third Base at Jefferson Fields in St. Peter. Photo by Gordy Kosfeld
Third Base at Jefferson Fields in St. Peter. Photo by Gordy Kosfeld
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