Life at No. 1 ‘really cool’ for Bobcats

No jinx here.

Since moving into the No. 1 spot in the Class 3A softball rankings, Benton Community has done anything but coast.

The Bobcats (23-4 overall, 9-0 Wamac Conference West Division) carry a 14-game winning streak into Thursday's double-header with at Western Dubuque.

'We knew this was a team with a ton of potential,” said first-year coach Eric Stenberg. 'We just needed to stay focused for the entire game. Now that we're giving our pitchers solid run support, we're a pretty tough team to beat.”

The Bobcats made a giant step forward last season. After a 20-22 campaign in 2012, Benton went 31-6 and captured its first Wamac divisional title.

It ended prematurely, though, against Vinton-Shellsburg in the first round of the regional tournament.

The push for redemption began with spring leagues in March.

'It seemed we went to Ankeny every weekend,” said senior outfielder Savannah Halstead. 'We were able to hang with the elite teams, but we couldn't always come out on top.”

Halstead tore an ACL last season, but with the potential of big things this year, rehabbed her way back quickly. At .434, she is third in the team in hitting behind Alyssa Wiebel (.482, nine home runs) and Lea Brunssen (.472).

'Our bats are really starting to come alive,” Stenberg said. 'At the beginning of the year, we weren't very disciplined. Now we're working the counts a little deeper.”

With three seniors and no juniors, this team is built for the long haul. The regular starting lineup features four sophomores, two freshmen and an eighth-grader.

Wiebel and Brunssen are sophomores. So is pitching ace Amber Fiser, whose fastball exceeds 65 miles per hour and has committed to Northwestern University.

Fiser, who transferred from Marion after her eighth-grade season, is 13-2 with a 0.40 ERA and 157 strikeouts (and just 16 walks) in 87 1/3 innings.

Wiebel is 6-2.

The Bobcats gathered last Friday for a 'team bonding” session. Among the tasks was periodic checking on the new rankings. Former No. 1 Clarke had lost, and the Bobcats had a feeling they would be climbing to the top spot.

They did.

'It's really cool,” Halstead said. 'Before last year, Benton softball had been pretty average lately. We're super excited about being No. 1, but we can't let it get to us.”

STATE STAT LEADERS

Linn-Mar's Katie Sommer has moved into the state lead in runs (46) and hits (53).

Sommer is one of four area leaders in an individual statistical category.

* Ashley Hamilton of Cedar Rapids Kennedy is tied for the lead with triples (eight).

* Solon's Emily Ira (14-0) still has not allowed an earned run in 89 innings of work.

* West Delaware's Hannah Cole has struck out a state-best 222 batters.

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