Jayettes softball starts season on hot streak, soccer heads to state

As the Bluejays soccer team earned a spot in the state tournament, Perry’s softball and baseball teams had their first full week of games. (Note: Events covered May 22-28)

Boys Soccer

The Bluejays punched their state tournament ticket on May 24 with a 3-1 win over Glenwood. A combined effort from Anthony Chavez, Jonatan Banuelos and Alex Banuelos goals gave the edge through the posts while goalie Luis Castro had a good workout saving 11 shots from the Rams.

Perry’s first state trip since 2018, the Jays square off Tuesday afternoon with No. 1 seed Assumption which is looking to defend their championship this year.

Softball (3-0)

Three games in and the Jayettes are humming.

It’s been at least two decades since Perry has started a season with three straight wins, and the last string of three W’s (not including doubleheader games) dates back to 2018. The hype is growing.

That all started with a 5-0 win at South Hamilton on May 22 on the back of Maci Tunink’s 12 strikeouts. Two days later, the Jayettes were staring down a 2-1 loss against West Marshall but six runs in the seventh inning reversed the script thanks to a three RBI performance from Emmalee Bell.

Big innings are no stranger to the Jayettes early on, as their 17-12 win over Roland-Story on Friday was highlighted by eight trips across home plate. Karagyn Whelchel led the team with a four-hit performance to help her score three times, as did Bell, Lydia Olejniczak and Ava Devilbiss-Sholley.

Through the first three games, Olejniczak has continued to be the soon-to-be Division I player she’ll be next year at Drake. She leads the team with nine total bases, holds a .500 batting average and has yet to strike out. But Perry’s also getting just as valuable at-bats from Whelchel and Bell with the former holding a .583 average and the latter driving in a team-best seven runs. Both made considerable contributions to last year’s team that snapped a four-losing seasons streak, but adding two more .500 hitters has ramped things up another notch. 

Baseball (1-5)

Bluejays baseball took in three conference games this week and walked away with a 1-2 record.

That win came via a 10-inning affair on the road at South Hamilton, defeating the Hawks 5-4 thanks to key contributions across the lineup. Of the 10 batters for the night, seven logged a hit, with Fausto Beato and Geren Kenney getting aboard three times apiece. Kenney also made the most of his time, stealing two bags and reaching home plate twice (as did Juan Hernandez).

This marked Perry’s first time in extra innings since a 4-3 loss in nine innings to Bondurant-Farrar in 2017, and the Jays’ first win in extras since a 3-1 win in the eighth inning against ADM in 2015.

Following that milestone, the Bluejays fell 14-2 against Class 2A contender West Marshall and dropped a 3-1 game against Roland-Story on Friday.

Through it all, pitcher Owen Myers has impressed with 24 strikeouts across his three appearances. That ranks 29th among all pitchers and fifth among sophomores in Iowa.

Girls Soccer (6-11)

After a shutout victory pushed the Jayettes forward in the playoffs, the end of the season came the next match as the reigning state champ Dallas Center-Grimes won 12-0 on May 23. 

Perry walks away from the season with six wins, the program’s most since 2019. And with over 80 percent of the team’s goal production — including leading scorers Jennifer Ramos and Ayden Erickson — and goalkeepers set to return, the Jayettes are on a path to keep the number climbing.