Kirkwood Softball

5 Eagles named softball All-Americans

Five members of the Kirkwood softball team have been named junior college All-Americans.

DoniRae Mayhew, Monika Bevans, Rachel Stewart and Lauren Kuch were named first team All-Americans in NJCAA Division II. Natalie Halvorson received second-team honors.

Mayhew, a sophomore, starred for the Eagles as a first baseman and pitcher. She hit .446 and led the nation with 30 home runs and 90 RBIs as a fearsome slugger, headed next to the University of Iowa. She also compiled a 20-3 record and 2.08 ERA as a pitcher.

Bevans, a sophomore catcher, hit .494 with 18 homers and finished second in the country with 79 RBIs.

Stewart, a freshman shortstop, hit .474 with 13 homers and 62 RBIs. She led all NJCAA DII players with 100 hits and 102 runs scored.

Kuch, a freshman left fielder, hit .469 with 12 homers and 68 RBIs.  Halvorson, a freshman pitcher, went 26-9 with a 2.51 ERA. Kuch and Halvorson are both Cedar Rapids Prairie grads.

Kirkwood reached the junior college World Series again this year and finished with a 49-13 record.

KCC softball team bumped from nationals

CLINTON, Miss. - The Kirkwood softball lost two tight games at the NJCAA Division II national championships Thursday and was eliminated from the tournament with a 1-2 record.

The Eagles squandered golden scoring opportunities in both contests and finished the season with a 49-13 record.

Kirkwood, seeded No. 5 in the 16-team tournament, lost to No. 4 seed Phoenix 4-2 in the winners bracket quarterfinals Thursday afternoon at Traceway Park in Mississippi. The Eagles left 11 runners on base against Phoenix and had runners at first, second and third in the bottom of the seventh when their final batter popped up to third.

Kirkwood left eight runners on base against Madison, the No. 11 seed, and had the bases loaded again in the seventh inning when their final batter popped up to the shortstop in a 5-4 setback.

DoniRae Mayhew (20-4) took the loss in Game 1 and Natalie Halvorson (25-9) absorbed the loss in Game 2.

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Eagles stomp Kankakee at JUCO nationals

CLINTON, Miss. - Cool, calm and relaxed.

That's how Kirkwood softball coach Joe Yegge described his team at the NJCAA Division II national tournament Wednesday.

The Eagles scored nine runs in the bottom of the first inning and blasted Kankakee, 17-0, in five innings in the opening round of the  World Series at Traceway Park.

Monika Bevans belted a grand slam in the first inning, DoniRae Mayhew socked a solo homer in the fourth inning and Lauren Kuch went 4-for-4 with two RBIs to pace the 18-hit attack.

Natalie Halvorson (26-8) pitched a one-hitter with five strikeouts with another impressive showing. Halvorson tossed a perfect game in  the district finals last week against Nebraska Central.

Kirkwood (49-11) will face Phoenix (50-8) in the winners bracket quarterfinals Thursday at 3:30 p.m.

The Eagles are making their fourth straight appearance at the World Series and sixth trip in 11 years under Yegge. He liked his club's  attitude on the big stage Wednesday.

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KCC softball gets No. 5 seed for nationals

CLINTON, Miss. - The Kirkwood softball has drawn the No. 5 seed for  the NJCAA Division II national tournament and will face No. 12 seed  Kankakee in the opening round Wednesday at 1:30 p.m. at Traceway Park.

The DMACC Bears drew the No. 1 in the 16-team field with their perfect  44-0 record, which includes four wins over Kirkwood.

Kirkwood and DMACC would meet in the winners bracket semifinals on  Friday if both teams win their first two games.

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