Bluejays fall in district semifinal

Sophomore Blair Nelson sprints to track down a pop up from second base.

By Morgan Guyer

The Northeast Nodaway Bluejays saw their season end in dramatic fashion in Rosendale on October 19, losing 4-5 against North Andrew.

Northeast Nodaway entered the Class 1 District 7 tournament as the one seed following a regular season where they won 15 games and lost 4, their highest win total since 2021. They entered the postseason with high expectations, and were able to defeat Bishop LeBlond 18-0 on October 18 in the quarterfinals. That set-up a rematch against the Cardinals, with a trip to the district final on the line. The two faced earlier in the season, with Northeast Nodaway winning 10-1.

The 4th seeded Cardinals were coming off a 8-1 win over Platte Valley, and very early on showed the Blue Jays they were playing at the top of their game. Both teams traded runs early, and after two innings, Northeast led 3-2 following a two RBI single from Senior Lindsey Jackson.

North Andrew grabbed the lead back in the 4th inning to go up 4-3, and they would hold it for the remaining innings. They added another in the sixth before the Bluejays responded with one of their own, setting up a dramatic final inning. The bottom of the 7th started well for Northeast, as Senior Makenzie Pride smacked a leadoff double into center field to represent the tying run. She would never get a chance to cross the plate however, as North Andrew would get the next three batters out to end the game.