Softball Game Preview: St. Edmund Fighting Blue Jays vs. Iowa Yellowjackets

The St. Edmund Fighting Blue Jays will head out on the road to face off against the Iowa Yellowjackets at 5:00 p.m. on Monday.

Friday just wasn't the day for St. Edmund's offense. They came up short against Iota on Friday, falling 9-0. The Fighting Blue Jays have now taken an 'L' in back-to-back games.

Meanwhile, winning is always nice, but doing so behind a season-high score is even better (just ask Iowa). They blew past Washington-Marion 22-0 on Thursday. The Yellowjackets might be getting used to big wins seeing as the team has won eight contests by six runs or more this season.

Ayla Stollsteimer made a big impact while hitting and pitching. She struck out eight batters over three innings while giving up no earned runs or hits (and not a single walk). That's the fewest hits she has allowed over her last 12 matches. She was also solid in the batter's box, going 1-for-2 with three runs and one triple. The dominant performance gave her a new career-high in runs.

In other batting news, Alivia Singletary was incredible, going a perfect 3-for-3 with six RBI, two stolen bases, and three runs. That's the most runs she has posted over her last ten games. Another player making a difference was Allie Darbonne, who scored three runs and stole a base while getting on base in all four of her plate appearances.

Iowa always had someone on base and finished the game having posted an OBP of .594. That was just more of the same: they've now posted an OBP of .500 or higher in three consecutive contests.

Iowa is on a roll lately: they've won eight of their last nine matchups. That's provided a nice bump to their 11-5 record this season. Those victories came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 12.3 runs over those games. St. Edmund's defeat dropped their record down to 2-2.

St. Edmund beat Iowa 10-5 in their previous matchup back in February of 2024. The rematch might be a little tougher for St. Edmund since the team won't have the home-field advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.