The Mid-Prairie softball team opened its season with a win Tuesday night, topping Clear Creek Amana 4-3 in Kalona. The Golden Hawks got on the board first, in the first, when Mallory McArtor opened the game with a ringing double and came home on an Emma Troyer sac fly. Clear Creek would tie the game with a single tally in the third only to see the Golden Hawks push two across in their half of the frame. Michelle Erwin walked and came in on a Mallory McArtor triple. Mariah Swartzentruber then drove in McArtor with an RBI single. Following the game Head Coach Justin Lutjen spoke about his team’s performance and their ability to face down adversity in the first game of the year.

“A lot of up and a lot of downs, we walk away with a lot of things that we can work on, but we can walk away with a lot of things that are positives in the game. We had some at bats that we were swinging at balls that we shouldn’t be, and we’re missing some good sticks in the lineup, but we’re deep enough where that shouldn’t bother us any night, so I’m just proud of the girls, they fought and they scratched and it was just one of those games that could have gone either way, but like I was telling the girls after the game, luck favors the prepared,” Lutjen said.

The Clippers would tie things again in the fifth with two runs. Clear Creek started the inning with three consecutive hits chasing Golden Hawk starter Olivia Lugar. Taylor Kurtz came on in relief for the Golden Hawks holding Clear Creek where they were for the final inning and two thirds. The Golden Hawks would walk off in bizarre fashion in the seventh off the bat of Erwin. Erwin dropped down a bunt for a base hit that was fielded by the Clipper third baseman who airmailed the throw to first. The ball bounded all the way to the fence while Erwin continued speeding around the bases, scoring easily to win the game. After the game Erwin talked about her last at bat and how the game ended.

“I’ve been working on the drag bunting for quite a while now, it is something that I did a couple of years ago, and I’m kind of trying to bring it back, we’ve just been trying to lay one down and move the runners around and use it to our advantage,” Erwin said. “We do base running everyday, it probably takes a good 20 minutes of our practice, and that is just a routine thing we do every day, and I saw Kelsey telling me to go and I looked at [Lutjen] on third as I was going to second and he kept swinging his arm, so I ran to three and after that I went home.”

Kurtz recorded the win in relief for Mid-Prairie throwing an inning and two thirds of shut out ball, allowing two hits and striking out two. Offensively the Golden Hawks were led by McArtor, who doubled, tripled, drove in one and scored twice. Swartzentruber and Troyer each added an RBI. Mid-Prairie is 1-0 on the season, the Hawks will next be in action next Tuesday against Durant