Coming off a tough 5-1 loss at 10th ranked Grinnell on Tuesday, the Oskaloosa Girls Soccer team returned to home grass last night and took their frustrations out on Centerville winning 7-0. Most of the damage was done in the first half as Osky held a 6-0 halftime lead off of two goals from Sophomore Ashley Brockman, who leads the team with 10 goals for the season, as well as goals from Hailey Adams, Aleda Renter, Brittany DeMoney and Keely Blanchard. The offense slowed a bit in the second half as Senior Laura Van Kooten scored the lone goal, but the defense held their ground to record the shutout win. Kinzie Cook recorded her first save and shutout at goal subbing for usual goalkeeper Sandra Blom. The Indians are now 4-2 on the season and head to the West Central Valley tournament in Stuart Saturday where they play Indianola starting at 10am.

The boys soccer team improved their record to 4-4 last night against Centerville with a 5 to 0 win. Oskaloosa came out strong from the start. Fridolin Fassbind scored early in the first half and added a second goal late in the first half. During the second half Adam Durech, Colton Berg, and David Anderson each scored a goal. Sam Adams, Rogan Skutka, and Fridolin Fassbind each had an assist on the night. Ben Boston racked up four saves in the effort. 45 shots were taken during the game by 10 different Indians.

The William Penn softball team will head into its final doubleheader of the year with a slightly slimmer chance of stealing the second seed for the league tourney after splitting a Midwest Collegiate Conference twinbill with Mount Mercy Thursday.

On Cancer Awareness Night, the Statesmen (20-27, 13-9 MCC) were victorious 4-3 in the opener, but lost the nightcap 10-4. While 2015 has been a disappointing one at times, the team extended an impressive streak on Thursday by reaching the 20-win plateau for the 19th year in a row.

Entering Sunday’s home doubleheader against Grand View (1 p.m. start for Senior Day), the navy and gold sit one game back of Clarke (13-7) for second place in the MCC.

The Mustangs (14-23, 3-13 MCC) put up the initial run of the first game, tallying a mark in the second. WPU answered right away as Marissa Pereyra singled home Bri Zerley.

The hosts then took a 3-1 lead in the third with two runs, highlighted by a double from Brittanee Grove that brought in Jorden Steele.

Mount Mercy refused to go quietly in defeat, though, producing one run in both the fourth and sixth frames, forcing the Statesmen to come up with heroics in the seventh with the game tied 3-3.

They did just that as Ashlee Dennis led off with a double and was moved to third on a sacrifice bunt by Steele. The Mustangs tried to avert disaster by intentionally walking power hitters Grove and Zerley since their runs did not matter anyways.

With one out and the bases loaded, the pressure was now placed firmly on the shoulders of freshman Taylor Vernon, but she did not flinch, driving a shot down the left-field line that just stayed fair to score Dennis with the game-winner.

Dennis, Grove (also one walk), and Pereyra were all 2-for-3, while Vernon was 2-for-4 with two RBIs. Zerley also finished 1-for-2 with two bases on balls. William Penn notched a 10-7 advantage in hits.

Grove worked 5 2/3 innings in the start, giving up three earned runs on six hits, while striking out two and walking three. She did not figure into the decision, though, as Lunden Young relieved her in the sixth. Young claimed the victory by allowing one hit and striking out one batter in 1 1/3 frames.

Between games, the teams joined together for a touching balloon release, letting balloons of orange (Leukemia), purple (all cancer), and white (cancer survivors) into the air.

When play resumed, the momentum from Vernon’s winning hit quickly faded away with MMU putting three on the board in the first.

The Mustangs tacked on four more in the third before WPU could finally manage a reply with one run in the bottom of the third. William Penn pulled to within 7-2 with another score in the fourth, but never really challenged Mount Mercy in the nightcap.

Chelsee Herron provided the Statesmen’s biggest punch of the day as she cleared the right-field fence with a two-run home run in the sixth. The homer is her first in the navy and gold.

Young (8-11) had a short outing of just 2/3 of an inning. Paige Miguel struggled as well (two innings), forcing the coaching staff to bring in Chyanne Koko for her collegiate debut.

Koko’s nerves settled quickly and she limited the Mustangs to just three runs (two earned) on seven hits over 4 1/3 innings. While keeping her squad within striking distance, the freshman southpaw had two strikeouts (no walks).

The Oskaloosa boys’ golf team was in action at home at the Oskaloosa Golf Course yesterday against conference foes Pella and Grinnell. In a very tight meet, Grinnell got the win with a score of 162, while Oskaloosa won the tiebreaker over Pella as both schools tied at 165. Oskaloosa’s individual scores were very good as well, as Andrew Brouwer led the way with a 40 in the nine hole event. Andrew Shaffer shot 41, Spencer Tucker and Tanner Lanphier shot 42, and Ethan Farner shot a 46 on the varsity squad. The Osky boys’ golf team is back in action at Edmundson Golf Course for a big invitational next Tuesday at 2 PM. The girls’ squad is in action on the same day against Pella Christian and Dallas Center-Grimes at Osky Golf.

William Penn University Athletics Director Greg Hafner has announced the hiring of Jaymee Highcock as the school’s new Head Men’s Soccer Coach.

Highcock comes to William Penn from Avila University in Kansas City, Mo. where he served as assistant coach for the men’s and women’s programs in 2013 and 2014. He helped the Heart of America Athletic Conference men’s team to its most wins in 20 years in 2014 and helped two Avila players to all-conference recognition. Highcock also assisted the program to the 2013 HAAC Tournament–its first trip to the postseason ever.

“We are excited to welcome Coach Highcock to our staff as the Head Men’s Soccer Coach,” Hafner said. “He played and coached in the Heart of America Athletic Conference and has recruited extensively in the Midwest. We feel our soccer program will continue to improve under his guidance.”

Highcock also brings experience from the club level, coaching the Kansas City Legends U-11 and U-13 girls’ teams and U-14 boys’ team from 2012-2014. He also headed the Puma FC U-10 boys and U-12 and U-15 girls in 2012 as well as the Futura FC U-12 and U-17 boys and U-14 girls from 2009-2012.

Highcock has gained knowledge from numerous summer camps around the country and has a plethora of coaching qualifications from English FA, USSF, and NSCAA. He has also played and shadow-coached several professional organizations in the United States and Europe.

Highcock graduated from Benedictine with a degree in Physical Education. He also earned his Master’s of Organizational Management from Avila in 2015. An accomplished player at Benedictine, he was a team captain and helped his team to a 42-12-2 record in his tenure. Highcock was a part of the 2009 HAAC championship team that reached the NAIA National Tournament.

Following his time at Benedictine, Highcock played two years for the Kansas City Brass of the PDL/USL.

“I am honored to accept the position as head coach at William Penn,” Highcock said. “I am looking forward to working with the staff and the current squad I am inheriting. Listening to the opinions from everyone, the school is heading in the right direction and I am thrilled to be a part of it all. I have big ambitions and so does the school and together I know we can achieve big things and history here at William Penn.”

The Oskaloosa Girls’ Tennis Team improved to 3-0 on the season and 1-0 in the Conference with a big win over Newton Tuesday night. This was a great team effort top to bottom. The girls had several close matches and they showed some real mental toughness down the stretch. Newton has won the Conference Title the last two seasons.

The Oskaloosa girls’ tennis team is back in action in Norwalk Thursday.