A 7-2 loss to Class 4A No. 15 Central DeWitt should help strike up the conversations.

The Bobcat softball team opened Saturday’s second wave of games at BCLUW’s Dave Lee Classic by beating Sumner-Fredericksburg, 7-2, for its fourth-straight win, before a reticent performance in the nightcap led to Marshalltown’s lone loss of the weekend.

Palmer pointed to a handful of examples to illustrate the focus of his postgame discussion with his team, each of them indicating a lack of communication on the diamond that proved costly in one way or another.

He didn’t speak in muted tones, even though in all he was content with the way the weekend wrapped up for his Bobcats (4-6).

T-R PHOTO BY ROSS THEDE - Marshalltown shortstop Erica Johnson, left, makes a diving effort to tag out Sumner-Fredericksburg’s Jordan Burrows on a stolen base attempt in the first inning of Saturday’s opening game of the Dave Lee Classic in Conrad.

“I got exactly what I was hoping for,” Palmer said after Saturday’s split. “I wanted us to come up here and compete, try to turn the page here in this tournament and have us compete better.

“It’s been six years since we’ve really played well here and I’m so happy for where we’re at. The last game didn’t turn out like we wanted it to but what I am taking from this is that we’re striking and hitting the ball well. We hit it right at players at times, which makes it tough, but we were hitting it hard.”

The Bobcats opened Saturday with a 10-3 smashing of Sumner-Fredericksburg in which they accumulated their seven hits in the first three innings of a game that only made it four frames because of the tournament’s time limit.

Sumner-Fredericksburg, without its starting pitcher due to injury, struggled to find the strike zone and helped Marshalltown to the tune of 10 walks and two hit batsmen. MHS freshman cleanup batter Sophie Younkin came through with a pair of RBI singles and a run-scoring groundout in going 2-for-3 with two runs scored and three RBIs to lead the Bobcat bats.

Erica Johnson finished 2-for-2 with three runs scored, while leadoff batter Gabby Himes singled and scored three times. Autumn Finch finished with a single and a sacrifice fly, and Marina Rosalez singled and scored in Marshalltown’s four-run second inning and accepted a bases-loaded walk in the four-run third.

T-R PHOTO BY ROSS THEDE - Marshalltown junior center fielder Gabby Himes makes a running catch for the final out of the first inning against Sumner-Fredericksburg on Saturday in Conrad.

The Bobcats didn’t strike out once against Sumner-Fredericksburg and rolled to victory as Kailee Pollard and Ella Grife combined on a five-hitter. None of the Cougars’ three runs were earned to Pollard, who struck out two and didn’t walk a batter in three innings. Grife walked one, plunked one and struck out one in an inning of hitless relief.

Central DeWitt, which moved into the 4A rankings this week for the first time in three polls, scored five of its seven runs with two outs as the Bobcats struggled to slam the door on the Sabers. Six of their seven runs were unearned to MHS starting pitcher Avery Mull, who was ticketed for seven hits and one walk over four innings, striking out two in the loss.

The two teams were tied at 1-all when Central DeWitt came to bat in the top of the third, scoring four runs that coach Palmer believes could have been avoided. Leadoff batter Katie Fox’s blooper over the second-base bag appeared to fall into the glove of MHS senior second baseman Alyvia Chadderdon briefly before her collision with the shortstop Younkin jarred it loose. The Bobcats bounced back to record a pair of flyball outs, but Emily Swanson slapped a double to deep left to drive in Fox, Mya Cavanagh walked and Mackenzie Rosenboom blasted a three-run homer on the recreation diamond in Conrad, meaning it cleared the 210-foot fences that are 30 feet deeper than most high school parks.

It might even have come on a pitch that Mull told Palmer, after the fact unfortunately, that she was struggling to throw.

“We talked about that in our meeting because when you really look back at the game and you look at the final score, there were probably five unearned runs right there,” said Palmer. “You subtract that and it’s 2-2 now.

T-R PHOTO BY ROSS THEDE

“If we take away — and that’s what we talked about in the meaning: communication, communication, communication — those errors, it’s a different game. The pitcher communicating with the coach that my pitch isn’t working so don’t call that, my catcher’s got to communicate, the infielders have to communicate with one another — all those things have to happen.”

Marshalltown managed just four hits against Central DeWitt hurler Mya Cavanagh, but the Bobcats only struck out three times in six innings so they were constantly putting the ball in play. That’s a plus in Palmer’s book, even if the outcome wasn’t the one they wanted.

Rosalez had an RBI double to plate Alyvia Chadderdon, who had singled with two outs, in the bottom of the fourth.

Mull allowed seven hits in four innings for the loss, walking one and striking out two, while Grife allowed one hit and one walk while striking out one in two innings of relief.

“My pitching staff did a really nice job this weekend,” said Palmer. “When I asked, they were really focused in. We still have to work on the mental aspect of things a bit, like when a few hits happen or a few errors happen, as pitchers we can’t let ourselves get down on some of those things. We have to fight through that and get a little better.”

T-R PHOTO BY ROSS THEDE

The Bobcats will plenty of opportunities to do so on the road this week, visiting 5A No. 4 Fort Dodge for Monday’s doubleheader, No. 2 Valley for Wednesday’s twinbill and No. 7 Ottumwa for two more on Thursday night.

“Those are all things that we will improve on, we will get better, but it’s the mental side of the game that we have to get better at,” Palmer added, “and we’re getting there. We’re better than we ever have been on the mental side.”

David Lee Classic

At Conrad

Friday’s Games

BCLUW 8, Sumner-Fredericksburg 2

Cedar Falls 8, Gilbert 7

Central DeWitt 12, South Hardin 0

Marshalltown 7, BCLUW 5

Saturday’s Games

Cedar Falls 14, BCLUW 12

Marshalltown 10, Sumner-Fredericksburg 3

Central DeWitt 13, Gilbert 3

Cedar Falls 11, South Hardin 3

South Hardin 14, Sumner-Fredericksburg 7

Central DeWitt 7, Marshalltown 2

BCLUW 4, Gilbert 0

——

Marshalltown 10,

Sumner-Fredericksburg 3

MHS 244 0 — 10 7 2

S-F 210 0 — 3 5 1

Kailee Pollard, Ella Grife (4) and Emma McWherter; Chantelle Nuss, Abby Meyer (2), Jordan Burrows (3) and Landree Kobliska. W–Pollard. L–Nuss. LOB–MHS 10, S-F 5.

Central DeWitt 7, Marshalltown 2

CD 014 200 — 7 8 2

MHS 010 100 — 2 4 4

Mya Cavanagh and Talbot Kinney; Avery Mull, Grife (5) and McWherter, Paige Wertzberger (5). W–Cavanagh. L–Mull. 2B–CD: Emily Swanson, Mackenzie Rosenboom; MHS: Marina Rosalez. HR–MHS: Autumn Finch. LOB–CD 5, MHS 6.

BCLUW 4, Gilbert 0

GIL 000 000 0 — 0 8 0

BCLUW 000 103 X — 4 8 1

Halli Nissen and Emma Mostek; Bailey Ashton and Lili Wilson, Kenna Paxson (3). W–Ashton. L–Nissen. 2B–GIL: Riley Nelson. LOB–GIL 9, BCLUW 5.

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