After playing varsity basketball in the winter, St. Bede freshman Hannah Heiberger started the spring on the JV softball team as she recovered from a sprained ankle.
Once she was healed, Heiberger was up to the varsity.
She started the season in the lower half of the batting order, but it didn’t take long for her to earn a spot higher in the lineup.
On Thursday, Heiberger was in the No. 3 slot, and she delivered.
Heiberger crushed two home runs and a double to lead the Bruins to a 10-0, five-inning victory over Marquette in a Tri-County Conference game in Peru to complete the two-game sweep of the Crusaders after an extra inning win Tuesday.
“We left her down to let her heal up a little bit, and then we got her up here and she started hitting the ball,” St. Bede coach Rob Ruppert said. “We decided we had to move her up in the order to get her more at bats.
“She’s been playing really well. She’s leading our team in hitting this year. She’s got good speed. She’s a good outfielder. She has a good arm. She’s a five-tool player. She’s brought a lot to our team this year. We’re really happy to have her up here.”
With one on and one out in the first inning, Heiberger smacked a pitch over the fence and off a car’s hood in straightaway center field to give the Bruins a 2-0 lead.
In the second, she launched a solo shot to left center as part of St. Bede’s five-run inning.
“I set a goal for myself this game to be confident and get one good hit, so it felt really good to have that,” Heiberger said. “Seeing all my teammates do it to just made the day a lot better.
“I think (the first home run), it was right over the plate. It felt good off my bat. (My second at bat), I wasn’t really looking to do much, just get on. It felt good off the bat.”
Heiberger ripped an RBI double to left center and later scored on a wild pitch during St. Bede’s three-run fourth that led to the mercy-rule shortened game.
On the season, Heiberger is hitting over .600 with four home runs and more than 20 runs and RBIs.
“It’s fun,” Heiberger said about playing varsity as a freshman. “I love the girls. Everyone is so nice. They’re very welcoming.
“I love softball, so it’s really fun (to be having a good season). It’s a great experience. I’m glad I get to experience it my freshman year so my next three years, I can use this to build off.”
Heiberger was hardly the only St. Bede player hitting well Thursday.
The Bruins (20-4, 7-2 TCC) had 10 hits, including seven for extra bases.
Lily Bosnich smacked a towering two-run home run to center field in the second inning, while Jillian Pinter, Morgan Mercer and Leah Griggs hit three straight doubles in the second with all three scoring and Mercer and Griggs driving in a run each.
“We came out hitting the ball,” Ruppert said. “We’ve been doing that all year. We’re averaging about 11 hits a game. We made good adjustments to a different pitcher today (than we saw Tuesday at Marquette) and we hit her hard.
“She throws a little bit slower than the girl we faced the other night. They just got to back their timing off a little bit and see the ball a little longer.”
The early runs were plenty for Macy Strauch in the circle and the Bruin defense. Strauch allowed just two hits while striking out two batters and walking none in a complete game.
“Macy pitched really well,” Ruppert said. “The other night, we spotted them six runs in the first two innings and they only had two hits after that in the next six. They only had two hits tonight. Macy shut them down really well.”
Madisyn Trainor and Chloe Thrush had the only hits for Marquette (19-5, 9-2), while Savannah Erickson took the loss in the circle.
“They hit the ball well,” Marquette coach Curtiss Johnson said. “We did fine. We threw strikes. We have some girls sick and some girls hurt. We have to get healthy and get ready for the end of the year. I was happy with the girls who were in there. They did what they were supposed to do. Sometimes that’s just the way it works.”