The Mustangs took home fourth place after falling to Eddyville-Blakesburg-Fremont, 14-2 in five innings, in Friday’s third-place game at the Rogers Sports Complex.

It was the final high school game for seniors Morgan Neuroth, Rayne McIlrath, Ava Bringmann and Makayla Kerber, leading the team to a 33-6 record and its seventh state appearance in school history.

E-B-F hammered out 15 hits and exploded for nine runs in the fourth inning to overwhelm the Mustangs.

“It was just a really fun week overall, we worked really hard to get here,” Neuroth said. “Honestly, our goal was to win the whole thing, but it started with winning that first game, which we did. We had a hard fight with Van Meter. We just didn’t show up today.”

T-R PHOTO BY JAKE RYDER - Head coach Jary Hoskey and the East Marshall softball team rallies together around its Class 2A state softball semifinalist trophy after falling to Eddyville-Blakesburg-Fremont, 14-2 in five innings, during Friday’s finale at Rogers Sports Complex in Fort Dodge.

Friday’s game got off to a surprising start as E-B-F hit a home run in each of the first three innings off Neuroth.

Even with the Rockets’ longballs, It was still just a 4-2 game after three innings as East Marshall made exceptional plays on most of the balls that didn’t go over the fence, including a couple of line-drive snags from Rayne McIlrath at third base and Makayla Hala at shortstop.

Offensively, McIlrath plated a run on a sacrifice fly in the first inning and the Mustangs scratched another across in the second via an E-B-F error on a ball in play by Libby Atcher.

The floodgates opened in the fourth inning as the hard-hitting Rockets started finding the gaps in East Marshall’s defense, in addition to capitalizing on multiple errors committed by the Mustangs.

East Marshall head coach Jary Hoskey felt the Mustangs had left everything they had on the field in Wednesday’s eight-inning, 4-3 loss to Van Meter in the semifinals.

T-R PHOTO BY JAKE RYDER - East Marshall’s four graduated seniors pose with their Class 2A state softball semifinalist trophy after Friday’s play in Fort Dodge. Pictured, from left, are Morgan Neuroth, Ava Bringmann, Rayne McIlrath and Makayla Kerber.

“I think the gas ran out of our engine,” Hoskey said. “You could tell at practice on Thursday, warming up today. But you gotta give [E-B-F] credit, they were the better team tonight. They hit the ball hard, we made errors and we couldn’t get the hit when we needed it.”

Neuroth, who will continue her softball career at DMACC, was named to the 2A all-tournament team along with sophomore Peyton Grabenbauer.

“She took us just about everywhere we wanted to go,” Hoskey said of Neuroth. “She’s a gamer, a good hitter, good base runner, and a smart softball player. She’ll go down as one of the best softball players, one of the best athletes we’ve ever seen at East Marshall. … Bob [Ligouri, DMACC softball head coach] is getting one hell of a player.”

Grabenbauer was the hero in East Marshall’s state quarterfinal win over Lisbon with a grand slam. She came in to relieve Neuroth in the midst of E-B-F’s big inning to get some state tournament experience in the pitching circle.

“I’m so thankful that this happened,” Grabenbauer said of her selection to the all-tournament team. “I can’t even describe that feeling and it just makes me want to keep working in the offseason so that there’s more to come. … Morgan’s been the best helper and idol I could’ve asked for. I have a lot more nerves and less experience than she does but she coached me through it. She’s the best teammate I could ask for.”

The Mustangs feel Grabenbauer will have an even bigger role in years to come.

“I’m so proud of her,” Neuroth said. “She’s been there all year for us, has a good attitude, comes ready to play and really showed up with her bat this week.”

This year’s East Marshall senior class leaves an incredible impression.

“The seniors really pushed us, if we were ever lazy or making a mistake they’d help us, push us to get better.” Grabenbauer said. “We know that we have big shoes to fill and they want us to fill those shoes, they want this legacy to keep carrying on. They want us to be better, and they’re the reason we made it this far.”

The team will look much different without Neuroth in the circle alone, but the cupboard is hardly bare with returning talent and some fresh faces from the middle school team that may make an immediate impact next year.

“I would just say to the younger girls, work hard, follow your dreams,” Neuroth siad. “Anything’s possible that you put your mind to, don’t let anyone stop you from what you want to achieve.”

The Mustangs understandably had tears in their eyes after the season came to an end, but warm embraces of families and friends in Mustang Nation restored a sense of pride and understanding of the overall experience so few in East Marshall softball history have experienced.

“We did have a lot of fun,” Hoskey said. “We practiced, we played, we did some goofy stuff together. The team unity is there, and that’s what makes for a great softball team. Positive parents produce positive kids.”

Van Meter’s Mady Schnell was named all-tournament captain — the eighth-grader hit a two-run go-ahead home run in Friday’s 2A championship versus Audubon won by Van Meter, 5-3. Schnell also hit a walk-off home run against East Marshall in the semifinals on Wednesday.

CLASS 2A

Quarterfinals

Tuesday, July 23

Van Meter 10, West Fork 0, 6 innings

East Marshall 8, Lisbon 1

Eddyville-Blakesburg-Fremont 6, Northeast 1

Audubon 4, West Monona 3

Consolation Finals

Wednesday, July 24

LIsbon 4, West Fork 0

Northeast 8, West Monona 2

Semifinals

Wednesday, July 24

Van Meter 4, East Marshall 3, 8 innings

Audubon 3, Eddyville-Blakesburg-Fremont 2

Third Place

Friday, July 26

Eddyville-Blakesburg-Fremont 14, East Marshall 2, 5 innings

Championship

Friday, July 26

Van Meter 5, Audubon 3

Class 2A All-Tournament Team

Lauren Wallace, Van Meter

Taryn Petersen, Audubon

Morgan Neuroth, East Marshall

Peyton Grabenbauer, East Marshall

Kate Shafer, Eddyville-Blakesburg-Fremont

Megan Lobberbrecht, Eddyville-Blakesburg

Finley Netten, Van Meter

Jordan Porsch, Audubon

Kennedy Wiedman, Van Meter

Riley Miller, Audubon

Mady Schnell, Van Meter (captain)