Ryan Murken

Your Prep Sports

IOWA CITY – When City High softball has thrived under head coach Jeff Koenig the success has come largely due to the Little Hawk’s offensive production.

After three consecutive sub-.500 seasons following a state tournament in appearance in 2021 the Little Hawks are back to bashing the ball and have climbed back into the Class 5A top 10.

Class 5A ninth-ranked City High remained red-hot offensively while pushing its winning streak to four on Friday with a 12-0 four-inning win over Marion (6-18) at Pearl Field in Iowa City.

“We’ve always prided ourselves on hitting,” Koenig said. “Go out there and hit balls hard, that’s what we want to do. We pride ourselves on hitting balls hard and that’s the name of the game for us.”

City High hammered 10 hits in three innings on Friday improving to 13-7 on the season.

The Little Hawks have scored 42 runs during their current four-game winning streak that includes a pair of victories over 5A No. 11 Cedar Rapids Prairie and a win over 5A No. 14 Cedar Rapids Kennedy.

City High has scored eight or more runs in 12 of 13 victories this season while averaging better than eight runs per game.

“We are seeing the ball really well throughout the lineup,” City High junior Molly Carlson said. “It’s not just three hitters, its not just the top two getting on base we are hitting nukes throughout the whole lineup.”

City High got its offense going early in a big way on Friday.

The Little Hawks sent 14 batters to the plate and had six hits in a nine-run first inning on Friday.

Sophomore center fielder Maeve Obermueller tripled twice in the nine-run City High joining Carlson as City High players to post a pair of hits in the opening frame.

“We all know one through nine we can all hit,” Obermueller said. “That’s probably the biggest thing for us is we know everyone in the lineup can hit.”

Carlson got City High on the board with an RBI double to right field that plated Obermueller.

Eighth place hitter McKenzie Brown had a two-run double to right field to add on the lead before Obermueller made it 8-0 with a three-run double to right field.

“I’m just being positive and thinking about hitting the top half of the ball,” Obermueller said. “I just want to get on top of it and get through it.”

Carlson followed with an RBI single up the middle to give the Little Hawks a 9-0 cushion.

“It’s been a while since we started a game like that,” Carlson said. “Those kinds of inning are so important to get us going and just fuel the fire.”

City High added to its lead in the second inning.

Nine hole hitter Vivienne Heller had a two-run double in the second inning and Avy Lindsey added an RBI single.

“Having a solid team one through nine in the lineup is so huge,” Carlson said. “Even when you face the best pitchers in the conference I’m sure it scares them a little bit to know that we can hit one through nine and they can’t take a batter off.”

City High sophomore pitcher Quinn Brende was the beneficiary of the run support.

Brende tossed a four-inning shutout allowing just three hits and one walk while striking out one.

“She has cut down on the number of pitches she was throwing and she has also developed a change up that she can throw for a strike now and she can fool hitters with,” Koenig said of Brende. “That kid has worked her tail off all off season.”

Marion                                   000  0  –   0    3   1

City High                               930  x  –  12  10  1

W – Quinn Brende                              L – Lucy Turner

2B – MAR: Kasey Frommelt. ICH: Molly Carlson, McKenzie Brown, Vivienne Heller, Iyana Merino

3B – MAR: Natalie Heald. ICH: Maeve Obermueller (2)

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