WORTHINGTON -- Coming off a pair of quality starts, Brandon Valley starting pitcher Katie Vandevoort was confident entering Tuesday's non-conference softball game against Worthington.
The sophomore left-hander didn't disappoint as she shut down the Trojan offense as the Lynx (4-3) defeated Worthington 4-1.
"I think I did OK," Vandevoort said. "It's the beginning of the season, so I'm just getting warmed up still."
Vandevoort allowed a scant three hits over seven innings, walked five and struck out 17 batters.
"Obviously, our bats didn't come around the way we needed them to, but it was against a very quality pitcher," Worthington head coach Sam Baumgartner said. "She was about as quick as we've seen all year, and it takes time to adjust."
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After two strikeouts to start the game, Kaela Wiese's walk was the only base runner the Trojans (2-5) would get in the first two innings, as Vandevoort struck out six batters in the first two frames.
On the opposite side, Emily Ebbers (seven innings, six hits, one earned run, two strikeouts) was able to keep the Lynx bats off balance as BV stranded three runners in the bottom of the first and second.
Lynn Harberts had the first Worthington hit in the third inning with two outs, but Vandevoort was able to strike out Wiese to end the inning unharmed.
It was in the fourth when BV finally got on the board.
Lindsey Biener hit a long drive over Harberts' head in left field and scored on a mishandled relay throw as BV had a 1-0 lead.
Nicole Mary followed with a walk and would later score as the Lynx had a 2-0 lead after four innings.
"For some reason, it takes a while for the bats to get going," BV head coach Suzanne Carroll said. "But once they get a hold of them, they are good hitters. But adjusting to a different speed is tough for our girls."
However, the damage could have been worse, as Danny Hanson lined to Carrie Timmerman at third, who tagged Tracy Thomas for an inning-ending double play.
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"I thought defensively, we were really sharp today; Carrie Timmerman, especially, at third base," Baumgartner said. "She was making one outstanding play after another."
With a two-run deficit, the Trojans finally had their first scoring opportunity in the fifth. With one out, Ebbers walked and advanced to second on a Lydia Mick sacrifice bunt.
However, Vandevoort stuck out the next batter to end the threat in the fifth.
After stranding a runner on third in the top of the sixth, the Lynx looked to once again give up a run in the bottom of the inning.
The first two batters struck out in the sixth, but Timmerman walked, and Rachel Pavelko reached on an error, giving the Trojans runners on first and third with two outs. However, Vandevoort's 15th strikeout of the day ended the innings and preserved the lead.
Hansen singled to start the seventh inning, and Laura Hieb reached on an error. Both would score in the inning as BV increased its lead to 4-0 heading into the bottom of the last inning.
Hannah Solem hit a bloop single over first base to start the inning and advanced to second on a wild pitch.
After advancing to third, Harberts stepped up to the plate with two outs.
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"I thought it was going to be just like last time," Harberts said. "It seems like I'm always one of the last people to be up when there's two outs, so the pressure is always on me it seems like."
Harberts, who had two of the Trojans' three hits, came through with a triple over a shallow left fielder -- scoring Solem from third.
"I was waiting the whole game for an opportunity for someone to get the bat on the ball," Baumgartner said. "With the pitcher throwing as hard as she did, all you have to do is put the bat on the ball, and it's going to go."
Kaylee Williamson drew a walk as the tying runner came to the plate.
"We started coming around towards the end of the game it seemed like," Baumgartner said. "Lynn had a nice triple at the end of the game that gave us a little sign of life."
However, Vandevoort struck out the final batter of the game to give the Lynx a 4-1 victory.
"They played very well defensively," Carroll said. "Katie did a nice job on the mound. We had a couple mental errors here and there as usual, but overall, they did a nice job."
Despite needing her defense for four outs, Vandevoort still thinks she has room to improve.
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"More towards the end of the season (I think I can do better), but I did pretty well today," Vandevoort said.
Worthington will travel to Redwood Valley Thursday for a Southwest Conference doubleheader.
"They are a very similar team to us," Baumgartner said. "If we keep our heads up like we have, and go up there and play the best we can, I think we'll give them all that they want."
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