Lisbon stands on even footing with North Linn after softball split

TROY MILLS — With four straight state-tournament appearances, there’s not much this group from Lisbon hasn’t accomplished.

A state championship, that’s one.

Triumph over North Linn, that was another.

Was. Past tense.

Addy Petersen hit a tie-breaking two-run double in the fourth inning, Ella Clark broke it open with a three-run home run in the fifth and Class 1A third-ranked Lisbon topped No. 1 North Linn, 7-1, in the first game of a Tri-Rivers Conference softball doubleheader Thursday night at North Linn High School.

“This feels amazing,” Petersen said. “We all really wanted it and competed at a high level.”

Jill Smith homered twice in the nightcap, and the Lynx prevailed in the nightcap, 4-3.

“You’re never satisfied with a split, but this was a good way to end it,” Smith said.

Both of these teams are accustomed to playing deep into the final week of the season.

North Linn won Class 2A state championships in 2019 and 2021 (the Lynx were runners-up in 2020); Lisbon finished third, third, fourth and second in the past four years in 1A.

The Lynx swept the Lions in 2018, 2019 and 2021 (the teams did not play in 2020). But Lisbon (20-3 overall, 14-2 Tri-Rivers) made an immediate statement in this one.

Peyton Robinson jumped on the first pitch of the game for a solo home run to center field, pumped her first as she rounded third base and yelled, “Let’s Go!”

“That got us going,” Petersen said. “It boosted our confidence and gave us energy for the rest of the game.”

North Linn (17-3, 13-1) answered on Jenna Lemley’s no-doubt homer in the bottom of the first inning, but the rest of the game belonged to the visitors.

The Lions reclaimed the lead in the top of the fourth. Kali Nelson singled, Clark walked, and both scored on Petersen’s double to deep center field.

“I had two strikes, then I watched the ball hit the bat,” she said.

Then came Clark’s big blow, to right field with two outs in the top of the fifth, giving the Lions a 6-1 cushion.

Lisbon pitcher Ryleigh Allgood crafted a two-hitter, retiring the final 15 batters she faced.

“(The Lions) are tougher than they were last year, that’s for sure,” Lynx Coach Chad Spore said.

Smith hit a go-ahead home run twice in the second game.

Her solo blast put the Lynx in front, 2-1, in the third inning. After the Lions scored a pair of unearned runs in the top of the fourth, Smith answered with a first-pitch two-run shot in the bottom of the inning.

“I’m not usually a first-pitch hitter, but I saw it low and that’s where I like it, so I went after it,” she said.

Lisbon Coach Bob Bunting said afterward, “I’ll take tonight. If (North Linn) is the best team in the state, I feel really good about it.

“The first game, our kids did a great job knowing the strike zone. The second game, they didn’t. That was the difference.”

Lisbon 7-3, North Linn 1-4

AT TROY MILLS

Game 1

Lisbon 100 231 0 — 7 8 0

North Linn 100 000 0 — 1 2 1

Ryleigh Allgood and Blair Baltes. Ellie Flanagan and Jenna Lemley. W — Allgood (16-1). L — Flanagan (10-3). HR — Lisbon: Peyton Robinson (4), Ella Clark (1); NL: Jenna Lemley (4).

Game 2

Lisbon 100 200 0 — 3 5 0

North Linn 011 200 x — 4 5 3

Addy Petersen, Ryleigh Allgood (3) and Blair Baltes. Kylie Munson, Ellie Flanagan (4) and Jenna Lemley. W — Flanagan (11-3). L — Allgood (16-2). HR — NL: Jill Smith 2 (5).

Comments: jeff.linder@thegazette.com