July 8 @ Greene County 

Southeast Valley softball ended their season in Jefferson on Saturday night (July 8th) in the class 3A semi-final regional game against the Greene County Rams. The Jaguars end their season with a record of 15 wins and 11 losses. 

The Jaguars struggled to get going offensively, seeing only one batter (Ellie Nolte) reach base after getting hit by a pitch. On the defensive end, the Jags’s nerves got the best of them in the first inning. The Rams jumped on the board early scoring three runs in the first inning. The Jaguars saw two errors that cost two runs. The speed of the Rams lefty lineup combined with their small-ball game would be too much for the Jags. The pitching duo of senior Maddie VanSickle and sophomore Chloe Lambert worked hard in the circle. VanSickle threw two innings and faced 10 batters; she was able to allow just two hits in two innings and only one earned run. Chloe Lambert closed the game in the circle throwing four innings. Lambert struck out three of the 16 batters she faced and allowed only one hit and one run. 

Jaguar softball went 15-11 on the season and 7-3 in conference play, finishing third in the Twin Lakes conference standings. The 2023 season saw many challenges on and off the field for the Jags, but the girls faced each challenge head on and came out on top more often than not. In the stat book: 

The Jaguar offense had a team batting average of .294 with a slugging percentage of .418, and an overall on base percentage of .357. The Jaguar offense was led by Jordyn Rowley with an overall batting average of .432 followed by Rian Schlief with a .392. The team hit a total of 10 homeruns on the season. Ellie Nolte and Chloe Lambert each had three, Lauren Eslick had two, and Maddie VanSickle and Alex Kitchen each had one. 

The Jags were also aggressive on the bases, stealing 80 bags successfully on 86 attempts. Jordyn Rowley (16/18), Lauren Eslick (14/15), and Ellie Nolte (14/15) led the team in stolen bases this season with a combined 44 bases stolen. 

While the Jaguars look to improve on the defensive end in the off season, they had an overall fielding percentage of .905 with 760 total chances. The Jaguars were led by Maddie VanSickle, Ellie Nolte, and Rian Schlief defensively.

In the circle, Maddie VanSickle and Chloe Lambert shared time on the mound. Maddie VanSickle carried most of the weight throwing in all, but three games. VanSickle threw 108 and ⅓ innings. During her time in the circle, VanSickle allowed only 54 earned runs while striking out 66 and walking just 30. Lambert missed five games due to a finger injury, but still managed to throw 51 and ⅔ innings facing 230 batters. Of the 230, Lambert struck out 54 while allowing just 39 hits and 12 earned runs. 

This year’s team grew the Southeast Valley program in more ways than just the stat book and created many positive memories along the way including: starting their season in exciting fashion going 11 innings with the Humboldt Wildcats, earning a big one run win over class 2A powerhouse Sioux Central, Alex Kitchen calling “game” with a walk-off homerun against the Cougars from Manson Northwest Webster in conference play,the team working together in the fifth inning against a talented Clarion-Goldfield squad to earn the come from behind win, hitting three home runs and everybody in the lineup registering one or more hits against SCC on senior night, and finally reaching their goal of advancing beyond the first round of regional play. 

The entire team would like to extend their sincerest gratitude to the community for their endless support this season. Seeing our outfield lined with fans, high fiving the girls after games, and the bleachers full of people cheering for the team’s success was incredible. We hope to see you all again in the 2024 season!