“Her [Anderson’s] mental toughness has come a long way, and continues to grow where she can be on the mound and reliable for us. Also, I want to keep her in the lineup, because she’s fast, she’s got a good bat, and keeps it moving,” Lakeview head coach Linnea Stibbe said of Anderson, who is a freshman. “The more experience she has, the better she’s improving. On the mound, we had a kind of inconsistent strike zone, and she battled through it. Her and I, and other coaches will chat between [innings], we’ll make little adjustments, and she goes out and she implements.”

The Lakers took a 5-0 lead following the first three innings and were able to maintain their lead the rest of the way. The Blackjacks had a string of strong defensive plays and got into scoring position a few times, but ultimately couldn’t get their offense to consistently connect. This was also just Dawson-Boyd’s second game of the season.

“We are doing better. This is our second game of the season, so we are behind everybody,” Dawson-Boyd head coach Nick Gruwell said. “But yeah, we are just trying to fill in the spots where everybody is comfortable.”

Anderson finished her pitching performance allowing just three walks and four hits with no runs, to her 14 strikeouts. Kadyn Perkins for the Blackjacks pitched every inning but the last, and tossed seven strikeouts while allowing five walks, six hits and three earned runs.

Photo by Samantha Davis: Lakeview's Makenna Anderson throws a pitch Thursday night against Dawson-Boyd in a Camden Conference matchup in Cottonwood.

Gruwell also credited Perkins for her performance, citing that she played well the entire game.

Anderson went 2 for 3 at the plate with a team-high two RBIs along with a run, while Kiara and Adison Hinz with Emma Brusven had two runs each.

“Offense was strong. They came out and they stayed out. We were pumped from beginning, in the dugout, on the field, up to bat,” Stibbe said. “When our girls keep that energy up, that comes alive too, to help propel it.”

Anderson tossed a pair of strikeouts to begin the game in the top of the first inning, and Lakeview scored a trio of runs in the bottom of the frame to build a quick three-run edge. Perkins also retired two batters for Dawson-Boyd in her first circle appearance as well.

All three of the Lakers’ first-inning runs came off two wild pitches and a passed ball. Kiara Hinz was the first to score, who got into scoring position at third following a successful bunt from Adison Hinz.

Photo by Samantha Davis: Dawson-Boyd's Rylin Viessman throws to first base after fielding a ground ball Thursday night against Lakeview in a Camden Conference matchup in Cottonwood.

Adison Hinz also made her way to third base after stealing two bases, and eventually scored on the wild pitch with Anderson at the plate.

Perkins was able to throw a Laker out at third with a pick-off to help get some defensive momentum going for Dawson-Boyd.

Brusven was originally walked to get on base, and accounted for the final run before Perkins threw her second batter out to end the inning.

Anderson continued heating up and finding her rhythm in the circle, tossing three strikeouts in the second inning to quickly put the Lakers back at the plate.

Yet, the Blackjacks had a good response on defense in the bottom of the second, also promptly recording three outs between one strikeout and a pair of infield ground-out plays.

Photo by Samantha Davis: Lakeview's Avery Hinz takes a swing at a pitch Thursday night against Dawson-Boyd in a Camden Conference matchup in Cottonwood.

Lakeview’s aggressive baserunning continued to shine, adding in two more runs in the bottom of the third.

“It’s [situational awareness] going along really well. After the first couple games on Monday [in a doubleheader against Tracy-Milroy-Balaton], we gave ourselves up too much on the pass. This week in practice, we focused hard on situations,” Stibbe said. “Don’t give yourself up … Just be aggressive on the bases, and [know how]to get yourself out of it, too. Working hard on that.”

Adison Hinz and Brusven accounted for the two runs, both scoring on an RBI single from Anderson. Anderson also advanced to second on the same play with the Blackjacks paying attention to home plate, before Dawson-Boyd was able to get the final out to prevent her from also finding her way home.

Lakeview ultimately continued to chip away and didn’t let up on the offensive end. Dawson-Boyd also continued to fight, attempting to get some runs in, but were also hurt by errors. The Blackjacks had three errors on the night to Lakeview’s one.

“We are coming along, compared to last year,” Gruwell said. “We are hitting the ball, we will have a little chat, we are hopping out of the box [a little early], but we are putting a swing on it.”

Photo by Samantha Davis: Dawson-Boyd's Kadyn Perkins throws a pitch Thursday night against Lakeview in a Camden Conference matchup in Cottonwood.

The Lakers scored another three runs in the fourth inning and one more in the fifth for a 9-0 lead, becoming the final score.

Macy Moen, Dawson-Boyd’s lone senior this season, had two impressive sprinting catches in center field in the bottom of the sixth inning to put the Blackjacks back at the plate for a final time. But, Lakeview finished the game off with a strikeout with a tag and forceout at first.

Lakeview evens its record to 3-3, and will next hit the road over to Renville County West on Tuesday at 4:30 p.m.

Dawson-Boyd (0-2) will also stay on the road and face Tracy-Milroy-Balaton at 4:30 p.m. on Tuesday.

“It feels good to be back out here. We got a lot of our starters back, we are a young team with one senior,” Gruwell said. “We have improved since Tuesday [Dawson-Boyd’s season-opener].”

BOX SCORE

LAKEVIEW BATTING

K. Hinz: 1-4, 2R; Adison Hinz: 1-3, 2R, BB; T. Fiene: 0-3, BB; E. Brusven: 1-2, 2R, BB; M. Anderson: 2-3, R, 2RBI; K. Gawarecki: 0-3, RBI; Avery Hinz: 0-2, R, BB; P. Walker: 0-2, BB; M. Velde: 1-3, R, RBI.

LAKEVIEW PITCHING

M. Anderson: 7 IP, 14 SO, 4H, 3BB.

DAWSON-BOYD BATTING

S. Bothun: 1-3; K. Gruwell: 0-2, BB; A. Estling: 1-2, BB; K. Perkins: 0-2, BB; A. Bothun: 1-3; R. Viessman: 1-3.

DAWSON-BOYD PITCHING

K. Perkins: 6 IP, 7 SO, 6H, 9R, 5BB.