It was quite the homecoming Tuesday for Central Missouri freshman pitcher Andi Siebeneck at Vogel Field.
Siebeneck, a Blair Oaks graduate who helped lead the Lady Falcons to the 2021 Class 3 state championship, closed out the Jennies’ doubleheader sweep by tossing five scoreless inning while allowing just three hits with no walks and six strikeouts in part of the 10-0 run-rule win in five innings.
“We had a lot of solid defense behind me,” Siebeneck said. “Lincoln had some good hitters, which credit to them, but I think the changeup kept them on their toes.”
Central Missouri gave Siebeneck run support before she even got to step into the circle with two runs in the top of the first.
The Jennies got runners on second and third with two outs against Lincoln starting pitcher Joss Marriott, and Jessica Sader delivered by sending a single up the middle to drive in a pair of runs.
Blue Tiger shortstop Maris Ollison was injured on the play as she collided with runner Makenzie McAtee trying to dive for the groundball. Ollison would not return to the game.
“They told me that the ball was past the fielder before the collision occurred,” Lincoln coach Jason Ollison said. “So there wasn’t any way they could call the interference.”
The single by Sader sent Siebeneck to the circle in the bottom of the first with a two-run lead, which would be plenty of insurance for her on the day.
Siebeneck felt the warm welcome from her family, high school coaches and friends as she ran out of the dugout to pitch.
“I was a little embarrassed but it was just kind of some teasing from my family,” Siebeneck said. “It was nice, though.”
Siebeneck retired the side in the first inning and got another pair of insurance runs in the top of the second after an errant throw found its way into the Lincoln dugout to make it 4-0 Jennies.
Myah Dwyer got the Blue Tigers in the hit column with two outs in the second but it would be until the fifth inning that they would get a hit off Siebeneck again.
On the offensive side, Central Missouri continued to add on with three runs in each of the third and fourth innings to get the 10-run lead.
But both sides would have to wait for the final 1½ innings, as a lightning delay stopped the contest for 30 minutes.
The break woke Lincoln’s bats up some, as Dwyer and Leah Wagner each picked up singles in the bottom of the fifth inning to put runners on the corners with one out.
“We talked as the girls were warming up that they might be a little relaxed and we can come out with a little aggressiveness and put some good at-bats together,” Ollison said.
But Siebeneck was able to work out of trouble to close out her shutout, as she induced two soft-contact pop outs to escape the jam.
“In the fifth, Andi came back and took care of business the way she is capable of,” Ollison said.
The Blue Tigers fell behind early in Game 1 to pave the way for Central Missouri’s 14-3 run-rule win in five innings.
The Jennies jumped out of the gate with five first-inning runs and added another in the second to lead 6-0.
Lincoln got a run back in the bottom of the second on a sacrifice fly from Wagner that scored Dwyer and got a little closer with an unearned run in the third.
But Central Missouri put the game out of reach with a big six-run fourth inning -- highlighted by a grand slam from Jadyn Sheffield to extend the lead to 12-2.
Dwyer continued to produce for Lincoln at the plate in the fourth by driving a 1-0 pitch to left field for a solo home run.
“I thought that was her worst at-bat out of the bunch because she got underneath it and kind of popped it up,” Ollison said. “… All her other balls, she stayed on top and hit line drives. … She hit it good enough that it snuck out, though.”
Dwyer finished the day 4-for-4 at the plate with two runs scored and an RBI between the two games.
“She was aggressive and she was attacking the ball,” Ollison said. “… When’s she’s aggressive, she is at her best, for sure.”
Central Missouri added two runs in the top of the fifth to create the final margin.
Leslie Callahan, Emma Rakes and Emily Williams each collected a hit for Lincoln (4-26, 1-13 MIAA). The Blue Tigers will look to snap their 13-game losing streak with two games at fourth-ranked Central Oklahoma. First pitch in Game 1 is scheduled for 2 p.m. Friday at Edmond, Okla.
Abby Allnutt led the way for Central Missouri (24-13, 8-6 MIAA) with three runs driven in to go along with her three hits.