The Sigourney Savages finished off a brilliant softball season with the high school game’s ultimate prize Friday night. For the first time in school history, Sigourney is a state champion after defeating Martensdale-St Marys 3-2 in the Class 1A title game in Fort Dodge in dramatic fashion.
The night started extremely well for the Savages when senior pitcher Carly Goodwin hit a solo home run in the top of the first inning to take the initial lead, but top-ranked Martensdale-St Marys would get two runs in the second inning to go in front, and it looked like the Blue Devils would make that stand up.
Senior pitcher German Campbell piled up 10 strikeouts and allowed just the Goodwin homer and a walk through the first six innings. But a thrilling rally would save the day for number-six Sigourney.
After Goodwin led off the top of the seventh with a single, outfielder Amiya Smallwood reached on a bunt attempt with two out to extend the game, setting the stage for fellow senior Ava Fineran to deliver the swing of a lifetime. Just the 36th hit of her career was a ringing base knock for Fineran that drove in both runners to put the Savages ahead.
While Martensdale-St Marys did get both the tying and winning runs aboard to start the bottom of the seventh, Goodwin and the Savage defense stranded them to start the celebration. After the game, Fineran told KCII Sports what was going through her mind in the game’s biggest at-bat.
“Honestly, kudos to my coach [Shelly Streigle], because I was nervous” Fineran said, “I was scared. It was all down to that. My coach came up to me [and] she [said] ‘Ava, close your eyes, take a deep breath and envision you getting the hit. So that just honestly gave me confidence, knowing that my coach believed in me, and I went up there and just did my best and left it all out there.”
Goodwin’s 91st and final career victory in the circle for Sigourney was a grind, but she still allowed only six hits and three walks in a complete-game effort while also striking out eight. She told KCII Sports it also helped her to take a deep breath.
“I knew that I kind of had to relax,” Goodwin said. “I was a little tense, [which in] the state championship game, that’s kind of what you expect, and so I just had to let my team work, and when I started doing that, that really helped.”
Savages head coach Shelly Streigle said no team had worked harder to be ready for the big moment and no team deserved the ultimate reward more.
“I knew these girls had it in them from Day One,” Streigle said, “and just seeing them play to the ultimate goal and through it and believe in themselves just is so fulfilling to me.”
Goodwin, Fineran and Smallwood join fellow seniors Erin Dawson and Lana Thomas in completing a four-year run at Sigourney that includes 102 wins and three trips to the state tournament.
But it’s this season’s team, finishing with a record of 26-7, that not only ties for the second-most wins in a single season for the program in the last decade, but also now makes the Savages the Class 1A state softball champions for the first time ever.