The Washington Demons began a new and highly-anticipated softball season with a bang, rolling to a 15-1 victory over the Columbus Wildcats in five innings last night in Columbus Junction.

Washington wasted no time putting on an offensive display, scoring twice in the first inning before tripling that advantage in the next frame. Three runs in the third and six in the fifth would be more than enough for the Demons to end the game early.

Junior outfielder Ella Greiner was a key part of a huge night at the plate for Washington, as her three hits, three runs batted in, three stolen bases and two runs scored were part of a 15-hit night for the Demons overall.

After the win, Greiner told KCII Sports that, even after being the eighth-highest scoring team in Class 3A last season, getting even better at the plate has been a big focus for her team ahead of the 2024 campaign.

“We did a lot of hitting over the off-season,” Greiner said, “staying flat, driving the ball, line drives, we worked a lot on that. It was great [tonight]. Everyone hit the ball really well, and I feel like, up and down, the lineup is doing really well so far.”

Senior Rylee Libe and sophomore Leighton Salazar had three hits and scored three runs each for Washington, with Libe adding a pair of RBI. Senior Emery Walton drove in three and also scored three times.

Columbus was led by freshman Ellie Sanders, who walked twice and had one of the Wildcats’ only two hits of the night. Columbus will look to bounce back later tonight when they start conference play against Lone Tree.

Meanwhile, junior pitcher Bella Salazar got the start and the win, allowing only one hit and striking out nine as the Demons, ranked seventh in the preseason Class 3A state poll by the Iowa High School Girls Athletic Union, wins its season opener for a third straight year.

Washington will be back in action this evening as they’ll play their first home games of the season in a doubleheader against Cardinal. Demon baseball is also playing tonight, looking to build on a season-opening victory against Highland when they travel to Muscatine.

You can catch Washington Demon softball’s home opener against Cardinal tonight on 106.1 FM KCII and streaming on KCIIradio.com and the KCII app, starting with the Roder Epoxy Pregame Show at 5 p.m.