There have been some struggles over the last few years for the Hiawatha softball program but on Monday the team took another step forward with a huge Big Seven League win at home against Holton as they split the doubleheader with the Wildcats. 

Holton came to town for a League showdown and the Wildcats dominated game one with the Red Hawks winning 15-0 in five innings. The Wildcats pounced early with four runs in the first and five more in the second and behind the pitching of Sarah Bond cruised to the win. Bond pitched all five innings giving up just four hits and one walk, while striking out six to earn the win. Offensively Holton out-hit Hiawatha 10-4 in the game and was led by a two-hit game for Bond, Casi Van Ausdall, Mackenzie Moore and Lauryn Moore. Both Van Ausdall and Moore each had a home run and Moore had four RBI's. 

Game two was a lot closer and the Red Hawks held off the Wildcats silencing their bats in the contest behind the stellar pitching of Lauren Bent. Bent mowed through Holton in the first two innings facing the minimum and the Red Hawks struck first as a leadoff single by Laila Jones paid off in the bottom of the second and she ultimately came around to score on a wild pitch making 1-0 Hiawatha after two. In the third a drop strike three allowed Moore to reach safely for Holton and with some errant pitches Lauryn Moore came around to tie the game at 1-1 without Holton even recording a hit. 

Both teams over the course of the game struggled offensively but Hiawatha got another opportunity in the fourth for runs and the capitalized getting a pair of hits, a catcher interference call and a walk to plate two runs and take a 3-1 lead after four. Bent delievered a two-RBI single in the inning. Holton would threaten the rest of the game flirting with a comeback as they stranded a runner in the sixth and in the seventh got one run across with a pair of hits, but the Red Hawk defense stepped up and finished the game to earn the 3-2 win and the Red Hawks first Big Seven win in over a year. 

Bent led the Red Hawks in the victory earning the win in the circle going all seven innings giving up just two runs on four hits, no free passes and struck out eight, while going 2-2 at the plate with two RBI's and a walk. Jones added a 2-3 performance for Hiawatha with a run scored. 

Holton in the loss had hits from Gabryel Porras, Mackenzie Moore, Annalyss Phillips and Lauryn Moore, while Sarah Lierz took the loss in the circle going six innings giving up three runs on four hits and four walks with four strikeouts. 

The split on the day sends Holton to 9-7 on the season and Hiawatha to 3-9 on the season. Both teams continue their season on Thursday as Holton hots Riverside and Hiawatha hosts Nemaha Central for Senior Day for the Red Hawks.