Bickel hits three more home runs for Andrean

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MONTICELLO -- In the process of clobbering Lewis Cass 9-1 and dispensing of Lafayette Jeff 15-3, Class 3A No. 10 Andrean slugged five home runs Saturday at the Twin Lakes Invitational.

Junior Audrey Bickel had three home runs, bringing her area-leading total to 12. Kelly Ryan and Morgan Moseley also homered, bringing the 59ers' team total to 20.

"That kid is like a professional hitter," Andrean coach Russ Serrato said of Bickel. "Never an emotion out of her. If she goes 0-for-3, she's coming back 5-for-5. She's just a special kid."

For all their big hits Saturday, the 59ers (18-5) failed to advance out of pool play because of a 6-3 loss to Class 2A No. 10 Hanover Central on Friday.

With Allyssa Moseley under the weather, Serrato started freshman Nicole Steinbach. Moseley pitched only two innings over the weekend, tossing a scoreless sixth and seventh in relief of Steinbach.

"She had the flu on Thursday, (and) she was sick (Friday)," Serrato said of Moseley. "I don't like to use that as an excuse. We had a couple opportunities we didn't capitalize on early."

Bulldogs plan to return

Crown Point coach Brett Crutchfield has every intention of taking his Bulldogs back to the Twin Lakes Invitational next year.

"Oh, absolutely," Cruchfield said. "It's got a state-tournament feel when you get all four pool winners together."

In their first Twin Lakes appearance, the Bulldogs (17-3) were not one of those pool winners despite allowing just three runs in three pool-play games. After breezing by Pioneer and Maconaquah, Crown Point fell to host Twin Lakes 2-1 in eight innings.

"We did not hit the ball very well at all," Crutchfield said. "We weren't very selective. We left a lot of runners on base."

The Bulldogs had the bases loaded and one out in the third and runners at second and third with no outs in the eighth. Both times they failed to score.

Savanna Gaumer delivered the game-winning hit in the bottom of the eighth, handing Taylor Perry (9-1) her first loss.

Defending champs ousted

This is not the same Munster team that mercy-ruled the hosts in the championship game of last year's Twin Lakes Invitational. Not after the Mustangs (8-12) graduated their battery and entire outfield.

"We're not as good of a hitting team as we were last year," Munster coach Beth Thornburg said.

But Thornburg was encouraged by how the Mustangs hit the ball, even if they failed to make it out of pool play.

Munster scored 16 runs combined in victories over Class 1A No. 10 Frontier and Western. The Mustangs were tied 2-2 with Lafayette Harrison entering the seventh before surrendering a grand slam in a 6-4 defeat.

"We're playing right there with the best teams in the state," Thornburg said. "Last year, we found a way to win those games. This year, we're not. A lot of that comes down to timely hitting, one or two plays a game."

Contact David Robb at 648-3122, drobb@post-trib.com or visit his blog at blogs.post-trib.com/robb.