The Columbus Wildcats split a pair of games on the softball diamond Saturday at West Branch. Columbus fell behind in their first game with Iowa Valley and faced a 4-0 deficit going into the middle innings. But two runs in the fourth and three in the fifth gave the Wildcats a 5-4 comeback win.

Junior Kennedy Woepking led Columbus by hitting both a home run and a double and collecting two runs batted in. Senior Lily Coil also had a double, two total hits and two RBI while also scoring two runs. Coil would pitch for the Wildcats and gave up just one earned run on five hits and a walk in a complete-game victory.

Columbus would drop their second game Saturday, falling to hosting West Branch 13-6. Sophomore Ellie Sanders had two hits and scored twice as the lead-off hitter, and eighth-grader Jacqueline Farrier had a double as part of two knocks and a run scored.

The ‘Cats were coming off a 6-3 loss Friday to conference rival Pekin. Despite answering the Panthers’ two runs in the top of the first inning with three of their own in the bottom half, Columbus did not score again, and three runs in the third would be enough for Pekin to go back in front for good.

Junior Daniela Diaz clubbed two doubles and a team-high three total hits while also scoring a run for the Wildcats. Coil also crushed a double and joined Woepking with one RBI and one run scored for Columbus, which now has a record of 5-2 in the North division of the Southeast Iowa Super Conference and is 7-6 overall.