'K' Cancer Night: Solon sweeps

 MOUNT VERNON -- There were storms to the west. Storms to the north.But it stayed dry here Wednesday evening, permitting an outpouring of generosity. And a moment of reflection.Class 4A ninth-ranked Solon swept Mount Vernon, 9-2 and 8-3, in a Wamac Conference East Division softball double-header at the Cornell/Mount Vernon Softball Complex.Those weren't the numbers that mattered most, though. Not on this night.Wednesday's "Strike Out Cancer" benefit raised $1,150 for the family of 2-year-old Nora Sanderson of Ely. Sanderson is battling leukemia.It was the second major endeavor by a local high school athletics team to assist the Sanderson family. The Solon track team raised about $7,000 earlier this month.Between games, the grandchildren of late Mount Vernon softball coach Gary Stamp threw a series of ceremonial first pitches. A plaque was unveiled with the poem -- "A State of Mind" -- that Stamp required his players to memorize and recite for more than three decades.Stamp died of lung cancer in October 2011.Both teams wore pink uniforms for the occasion.The Spartans (7-0 overall, 4-0 Wamac East) continued their early-season offensive onslaught in Jim White's first season. They have scored 72 runs in their first seven games.White won six state championships at Clear Creek Amana before moving east this season.Solon put pressure on the Mustangs (3-4, 0-4) in just about every inning. The Spartans broke open the first game with a four-run third inning that extended the margin to 6-0.It was another four-run outburst that broke open the nightcap. Kara Misel's two-run double was the big blow to an uprising that put the Spartans in command, 7-1, in the top of the fourth.The second game featured an extremely scary moment late. Hannah Whitley shattered her aluminum bat on a pop fly, with the barrel whizzing by Solon pitcher Emily Ira, who had to duck to avoid getting hit by the projectile. 

Holly Hinkel and Ali Herdliska. Marissa Roe and Hannah Whitley. W -- Hinkel (4-0). L -- Roe (2-1).

Game 1

 

 

 

 

R

H

E

Solon

1 1 4

0 3 0

--

9

12

2

Mount Vernon

0 0 0

0 0 1

1

--

2

7

2

Emily Ira and Herdliska. Lily Dahlstrom, Michaela Martin (5) and Whitley. W -- Ira (2-0). L -- Dahlstrom (1-2). HR -- Solon: Riley Ogden (2)

Game 2

 

 

 

 

R

H

E

Solon

0 2 1

4 0 1

--

8

12

2

Mount Vernon

0 1 0

2 0 0

--

3

5

3