Ridge View blanks Emmetsburg 17-0, Storm Lake shuts out Spirit Lake 2-0

Storm Lake and Ridge View delivered the clearest early-summer signals on a busy June 1 scoreboard, and both programs used dominant pitching to make their points. Storm Lake’s softball team blanked Spirit Lake 2-0 at Storm Lake High School, while Ridge View turned Emmetsburg into a runaway, winning 17-0 behind a nine-run first inning. On the baseball side, Storm Lake added another emphatic result, beating Spirit Lake 12-2 in six innings to open Lakes Conference play.

Storm Lake’s softball win came in a matchup that had been set for Monday, June 1, 2026, at 7:00 p.m. CT, with the Tornadoes entering at 2-1 and Spirit Lake at 3-4. Avery DeHaan set the tone in the circle, throwing a four-hit shutout and striking out 12 as Storm Lake kept Spirit Lake off the board. The result gave the Tornadoes a clean early-season win and extended the kind of form that matters once league and regional schedules start to tighten.

Ridge View’s softball result was the most lopsided of the night. The Raptors scored nine runs in the top of the first inning against Emmetsburg, then kept the pressure on to finish with 14 hits in a 17-0 victory. Nora Todd controlled the game from the start, allowing three hits, walking none and striking out two over four innings. Barry Andersen said the offense did a strong job hitting the ball hard, putting it in play and forcing mistakes with aggressive baserunning, while the defense backed Todd with an error-free performance.

Storm Lake’s baseball team matched that momentum with a six-inning win over Spirit Lake in the Lakes Conference opener. The Tornadoes used two four-run innings to seize control, finished with 12 hits and closed the game under the 10-run mercy rule in the sixth. Brock Edwards earned the win, allowing six hits and one earned run over six innings, while the offense featured Brock Edwards, Carson Taylor and Trey Boettcher among its key contributors. Michael Knapp said the team responded well to its previous loss and made needed adjustments at the plate.

Not every Buena Vista County-area result broke Storm Lake’s way. Ridge View’s baseball team fell 7-6 to Emmetsburg in a one-run game, and the wider roundup also included Algona 4, Pocahontas Area 1, Ar-we-va 3, East Sac County 2, Spencer 7, Estherville Lincoln Central 2 in softball and Spencer 21, Estherville Lincoln Central 0 in baseball. The night left Storm Lake with wins in both softball and baseball, and Ridge View with a blowout softball victory that stands out as one of the strongest early-season statements in the region.