Jefferson Softball

No. 3 J-Hawks nipped by No. 2 Johnston

FORT DODGE - Erin Kuba dreamed about big situations like this when she was growing up in Palo across the street from the city ballpark.

State softball tournament, playing the defending champions, 1-0 ballgame, runners on second and third, two outs, time running out. A key base hit and her team probably wins the game.

"Yeah, I like being in that situation," she said Thursday evening.

Unfortunately, the dream did not have a happy ending. Kuba popped up, the inning ended and her team ended up losing by one run instead of winning by a run.

The third-ranked Jefferson J-Hawks were trimmed by second-ranked Johnston, 2-1, in the semifinals of the Class 5A state tournament Thursday at Harlan Rogers Park in a snappy 80-minute contest.

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Hansen hopes to connect for J-Hawks

Cedar Rapids Jefferson senior Maddie Hansen would like to get a few good pitches to hit in the Class 5A state softball tournament Thursday evening in Fort Dodge.

That's not too much to ask, but the all-state catcher did not get much a chance in the opening round Monday when the Linn-Mar Lions gave her four straight intentional walks in a 6-3 Jefferson victory.

The third-ranked J-Hawks (36-7) face second-ranked Johnston (34-4) in the semifinals at 5 p.m. Thursday at Harlan Rogers Park and Hansen is anxious to swing the bat again.

Hansen is one of the most feared hitters in the state with a .504 batting average, 11 home runs and 46 RBIs. Linn-Mar walked her six times in a Mississippi Valley Conference doubleheader this year, then walked her four more times at the state tournament.

"It puts me on base for Erin (Kuba) behind me and Kennedy Dighton behind me, and so I'll take a base," said Hansen. "If they want to put me on I'll go for it, because I know my teammates can do the job behind me.

"It doesn't really bother me any more."

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J-Hawks cherish win over Lions at state

FORT DODGE - Alyssa Olson has pitched better games during her all-state career with the Jefferson J-Hawks, but few have felt as sweet as this one did Monday afternoon.

Olson tossed a complete game as the third-ranked J-Hawks topped Linn-Mar, 6-3, in the opening round of the Class 5A state tournament at Harlan Rogers Park in Fort Dodge.

Olson and the J-Hawks lost in the opening round of the state tournament in 2013 and 2014, so this was the last chance for Olson and the rest of the Jefferson seniors to reach the semifinals.

"It feels great," she said. "We knew coming into this game that it wasn't going to be easy, by any means. We knew that Linn-Mar was going to put up a fight and we were going to put up a fight."

Olson has enjoyed lots of big wins, including a 7-0 masterpiece with 13 strikeouts against Muscatine in the regional finals two years ago as a sophomore. Monday's victory was really big, too.

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Olson, Ryan are foes now, teammates later

Alyssa Olson of Jefferson and Maddy Ryan of Linn-Mar will be teammates at Coe when they begin their college softball careers later this summer, but first they have some unfinished business to settle as high school players.

Olson and Ryan will pitch against each other Monday afternoon when Jefferson (35-7) faces Linn-Mar (25-17) in the opening round of the Class 5A state tournament in Fort Dodge.

First pitch is scheduled for 3:30 p.m.

Ryan and the Lions nipped Olson and the J-Hawks, 3-2, when they pitched against each other in the first game of a Mississippi Valley Conference doubleheader at Linn-Mar on June 9.

Jefferson won the second game of that doubleheader, 14-4, and now the two Metro rivals will meet 150 miles away in Fort Dodge to settle the score for this season.

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