Central and Simpson square off today on the softball diamond in Pella to open American Rivers Conference play.

The Dutch were a preseason league championship contender, but were dealt a crushing blow when ace pitcher Sydni Huisman suffered an injury moments before the season opener. She has not pitched as the Dutch have started their 2022 campaign 12-8. Coach George Wares says that winning the ARC title is now a much tougher challenge, but one his players are up for.

“If Central has a full healthy squad, Vegas odds might have us 50 or 60 percent to win the league, nobody would have been stunned. Now, without Sydni, I’m still not sure anybody would be stunned, but they’d be very surprised if we can win it. I think our players know it’s different, but until the mathematical numbers says we’re out of it and we can’t win it, that’s what we’re trying to do.”

Simpson is off to a 15-6 start to the season, and today’s contest is the league opener for both. First pitch between the Dutch and the Storm is scheduled for 2:00 at the Kuyper Athletics Complex softball field in Pella, and you can hear the doubleheader live on the KRLS3 stream at www.kniakrls.com. Audio commentary will also be available with video at CentralDutchNetwork.com.