Cyclones Softball has Game Suspended with AHSTW Due to Power Failure

Cyclones Softball has Game Suspended with AHSTW Due to Power Failure –

(5-27-26) – Still searching.

Harlan Community was feeling good about getting their first win on the season Tuesday as they held a 10-3 lead over AHSTW in the top of the 5th. That’s when they were cast into darkness.

A power failure at the Lady Vikes field wouldn’t allow the lights to come on and the game was suspended due to darkness. No date to resume the game has been announced at this time.

It’s a situation that Cyclone Coach Nolan Heese has not really ever experienced. He’s dealt with lightning delays but not “lights out” delays.

But he was pleased with the effort of his Harlan Community team against AHSTW, especially Lauren Schmitz, who made her season debut in both the circle and at the plate and excelled in both areas.

“She's kind of that glue person for us,” Heese said of his senior hurler. “She's never going to like WOW you with throwing 60MPH or hitting home runs or anything like that. She's an ultimate scrapper. She finds a way to hit spots, get people off balance, and then at the plate, she just puts the ball in play. She doesn't strike out very often. She makes the defense work and she is good at poking into certain spots.”

After a rough start, where she gave up hits to the first two batters that led to two 1st inning runs by the Lady Vikes, Schmitz settled down, retiring 12 of the next 14 batters. She gave up just 3 runs on 3 hits in 4 innings of work. At the plate, Schmitz contributed a big, 2-out, 2-RBI single to extend the Cyclones lead in the 3rd.

Taylor Heese got the scoring going in the 1st with an RBI single and was followed by a 2-RBI single by Suzy Kenkel, who then scored on a wild pitch to give Harlan Community a 4-0 lead.

Heese believes Kenkel’s experience as a four-year starter for the Cyclones is incredibly valuable.

“She's kind of got that leadership mentality,” said Heese about Kenkel. “She's used to it. She's seen it before.”

It’s that type of mentality that Heese hopes will rub off on shortstop Brynn Schumacher, who’s already making a statement early in the season with her hustle and ability to bounce back from adversity.

“She's kind of got that dog mentality of she's going to go out and compete no matter what. She's confident in herself. She's strong. She's fast.

“Against Creston, she actually started really poorly. She strike out, strike out, strike out her first three at bats, but then she ripped a double from there and kind of got that confidence and once she saw that go, it's been uphill since.”

Heese and his team will look to keep going uphill and complete the game this time when they host Denison-Schleswig on Thursday.

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