Audubon SB Comes Up Short in 2A Final vs Van Meter, 5-3

Audubon Coach Andrea Schwery (7-26-24)

Audubon's Taryn Petersen
(7-26-24)

Audubon's Jordan Porsch
(7-26-24)

Audubon SB Comes Up Short in 2A Final vs Van Meter, 5-3 -

(7-26-24) – So close.

Audubon’s softball was in position to beat the top team in their class, but came up short, falling to No. 1 Van Meter 5-3 in the Class 2A State Championship Game in Fort Dodge on Friday.

Wheelers Coach Andrea Schwery was proud of her team’s effort this entire season.

“They stepped up under the lights. We had a lot of big games and really could have count themselves out, could have gave up, but they never did. Even that last inning over there. We put runners on and we just needed one hit to go through. It didn't happen, but they fight till the end and that's all you do and I couldn’t be more proud of them.”

Audubon had a 3-1 lead heading into the bottom of the 5th, but Van Meter would tie the game with a pair of runs before getting a huge 2-run homer from Mady Schnell in the bottom of the 6th to take the lead for good. For the Bulldogs, it was their first state championship.

Taryen Petersen hit an RBI single in the 4th to give the Wheelers a two-run lead . Petersen said it helped her team play harder

“I think me getting that hit brought everybody a lot more excitement and more energy and we just kept it all going through the game.”

Porsch knew the game wasn’t over at that point.

“When we got ahead, it was, you know, ‘This isn't over. We still have to score.’ Pretend you're down because they were down and came back (and) we were down and came back in the semifinals, so we know it's possible.”

Riley Miller went all 7 innings, giving up 5 runs, 3 earned on 5 hits, while striking out 7. Schwery knows that while her freshman hurler will not be pleased with the outcome, she pitched a terrific game.

“I'm excited to see Riley's comeback next year. The best the rest of the 2A should be looking out. She's gonna come back fired up. I believe in her. She had a big jump between 8th grade and freshman year. She's gonna be even bigger between freshman and sophomore, so she'll be back here. She's a great pitcher, great kid, and she's gonna be back.”

Despite the loss, Porsch feels Wheelers softball has a bright future.

“We've never made it to State and you know, maybe we didn't win it. But, runner up is still pretty good for never being here before and I think we set a standard and I think underclassmen from now on are going to want to do what we did.”

Audubon finishes their season 29-5.

View past scores by visiting the Iowa High School Athletic Association's website, Iowa Girls High School Athletic Union website,
or Iowa Quik Stats