The Roland-Story Norsemen and South Hamilton Hawks renewed their storied rivalry once again on Thursday night, in Heart of Iowa Conference showdowns at the Mike Penning Athletic Complex in Jewell. Roland-Story baseball entered with a mark of 10-12, while South Hamilton entered at 8-10. Roland-Story softball entered with a record of 9-14, while South Hamilton entered at 4-18.
The matchup on the baseball diamond would prove high-drama all the way through, with each team trading a run in the 1st, then trading 2 runs in the 5th to tie it at 3-3. In the 8th, Roland-Story took a 5-3 lead in the top of the frame, South Hamilton would cut it to one, but Landen Skartvedt, who tied the game with an RBI hit, was ruled out at 2nd on a controversial play. A runner would eventually get to 3rd, but Tjerdan Johnson struck out looking to end the game at 5-4. Brett Schmitz was the winning pitcher of record in relief, throwing 2.2 IP, allowing 1 run off 3 hits and struck out 3. Schmitz, William Zamzow and Sam Knoll all tallied RBI for the Norsemen, South Hamilton did not have stats posted on Bound at time of release.
Softball showcased an explosive affair, with South Hamilton trailing at 12-3 at one point, before the Hawks put up 7 runs in the 5th to bring it to 12-10. The Norsemen would get 4 runs across in the next 2 frames for insurance, and Miley Geise would come in and close the game down for Roland-Story in the circle for the 16-10 win.
South Hamilton softball returns to action on Saturday, when they host their annual home softball tournament in Jewell and Stanhope, while South Hamilton baseball returns on Monday when they host West Marshall. Roland-Story softball returns Friday when they host the Norsemen Classic Tournament in Roland, Roland-Story baseball returns on Monday when they host PCM.