Owatonna Softball Off to Blistering Start on the Season

About the only thing that has stopped the Owatonna High School girls' fastpitch softball team so far this season is Mother Nature. The Monday, April 18 game scheduled at Bloomington Jefferson was postponed by the chilly, breezy conditions and is scheduled to be made up later in the season.

Entering play on Tuesday, April 19 at Faribault the Huskies are 4-0 overall and 3-0 in games that count in the Big Nine Conference standings. They gave up a run in the first inning of the first game and didn't surrender another. After a 3-1 win in that opening game against Rochester Century, OHS has ten-runned Century, Austin, and Rochester John Marshall.

OHS coach Jeremy Moran says all phases of the game have started strong, "It's been a really good start for us. Defensively, pitching, and offensively things are clicking pretty good right now and it's great to see."

Owatonna has made numerous strong defensive plays and has thrown at least a couple of runners out at home. Parris Hovden and Kennedy Hodgman have shared pitching duties. The top of the batting order with Katelyn Bentz and Izzy Radel is off to a hot start swinging the bat, among other players.

The Huskies varsity roster:

• No. 1 Katelyn Bentz, junior
• No. 2 Elizabeth Radel, sophomore
• No. 3 Paiton Glynn, junior
• No. 5 Danika Ringhofer, sophomore
• No. 7 Taya Selbrade, sophomore
• No. 8 Kennedy Hodgman, sophmore
• No. 9 Samantha Bogen, sophomore
• No. 10 Averie Roush, freshman
• No. 11 Kendra Bogen, eigth grade
• No. 13 Parris Hovden, senior
• No. 14 Zoie Roush, sophomore
• No. 15 Mehsa Krause, sophomore
• No. 21 Makayla Stenzel, junior

Varsity coaches are Jeremy Moran, Rachel Malo, and Kevin Raney.

Owatonna High School softball schedule:

• Monday, April 11 vs Century, doubleheader (W 3-1, W 14-0)
• Tuesday, April 12 vs Austin, W 10-0
• Wednesday, April 13 vs Rochester JM, W 10-0
• Tuesday, April 19 at Faribault, 5 pm
• Thursday, April 21 at Red Wing, 5 pm
• Saturday, April 23 at Forest Lake Tournament
• Tuesday, April 26 at Winona, 5 pm
• Thursday, April 28, home vs Mankato West, 5 pm
• Tuesday, May 3 at Rochester Mayo, doubleheader, 4 pm
• Thursday, May 5, home vs Mankato East, 6 pm
• Tuesday, May 10 at Rochester JM, 5 pm
• Thursday, May 12, home vs Northfield, doubleheader, 4 pm
• Saturday, May 14, home vs Albert Lea, 1 pm
• Thursday, May 19 at Bloomington Jefferson, 4:30 pm
• Friday, May 20 at Mankato West, 5 pm