June 4, 2017 at 1:55 a.m.
Walk off ends SA's season
Starfries fall in semi-state semifinal
Walk off ends SA's season
Copyright 2017, The Commercial Review
All Rights Reserved
LAKEVILLE — The pitchers combined to retire the first 12 batters they faced.
Then the offenses started threatening. But they couldn’t break through against Katelin Augsburger and Ellie Snep.
Scoreless through five innings, the story line became clear: One team would get one timely hit to win the game.
As it turned out, the team was the Wildcats. The time was the bottom of the seventh inning.
Andrea Snavley’s line drive zipped over the head of left fielder Tori Raugh to send Snep to the plate as 10th-ranked Whitko earned a walk-off win to end the season for the Class 2A No. 3 South Adams Starfires in the semi-state semifinal at Newton Park.
SAHS coach Jesse O’Dell couldn’t help but reflect on the five consecutive innings in which his team was unable to come up with the game-breaking hit the Wildcats delivered in the final frame.
“I don’t know how many times we left runners in scoring position today, but we did it,” said O’Dell, whose team was also shut out — 9-0 — against Madison-Grant in last season’s semi-state semifinal at the same venue. “We worked on bunts this whole week. After semi-state last year, we wanted to make sure that was something we could do. And we didn’t do a fantastic job of that.
“Even with that said we had runners in scoring position with less than two out several times and we just couldn’t get that clutch hit.”
South Adams (23-4) put its leadoff hitter on base in the third inning and advanced runners to scoring position in the fourth, fifth, sixth and seventh. But each time they failed to score.
So as Whitko (24-5) came to the plate in the bottom of the seventh, they were left hoping they could earn themselves another chance to swing the bats.
That possibility was looking good when Augsburger struck out pinch hitter Meagan Christoffel to open the inning. But then Snep zipped a single up the middle to put the potential game-winning run on base.
It didn’t take long for Snavley to convert that potential into victory.
The senior first baseman ripped a line drive to left field on the first pitch, and as soon as the ball zoomed over Raugh’s head the game was done. The ball went all the way to the fence, and Snep was already rounding third by the time Raugh tracked it down. Snep scored easily, all the way from first base, leaving a dejected group of Starfires to stroll solemnly off the field, senior first baseman Morgan Alberson with her sunglasses hanging from her mouth.
“I knew one of them was going to hit eventually,” said Whitko coach Michele Garr. “I just didn’t know it was going to be then.
“They were right on it the whole game. Anna (Ousley) had a hit earlier in the game. So, I knew it was just a matter of time for one of them. They just had great timing in the bottom of the seventh.”
The Starfires were unable to find that timing.
Their best opportunity came in the top of the sixth inning, when Casi Evans led off with a single to center field before giving way to courtesy runner Abby Myers. The sophomore took second on a wild pitch, and then Bella Ramirez filled the open first-base spot thanks to a walk.
Alberson bunted the runners over to second and third bases respectively and very nearly beat out the throw to first to load the bases.
But Snep fought back, striking out Katelin Augsburger for the third time in the game and then getting her freshman sister Taylor to ground out back to the circle to end the inning.
“She has nerves of steel, and she trusts her defense,” said Garr of Snep, who struck out 10 and scattered five hits and a walk in the shutout. “So she doesn’t get rattled easy.”
Whitko went on to lose 13-0 to top-ranked Elwood in Saturday evening’s semi-state championship game. The Panthers had fought off Boone Grove 2-0 in the other semifinal.
The only hit Katelin Augsburger allowed prior to the seventh inning was an Ousley double to left field in the fourth. She struck out 13 batters, getting each of the final hitters in the Wildcat order twice, and walked just one.
Kayla LeFever had two of the Starfires’ five hits and was stranded on second base twice. Ramirez was 1-for-2 with a walk and a stolen base and was also twice left standing on second.
The loss ended a second consecutive standout season for the Starfires, who opened with 16 straight wins, spent several weeks as the top-ranked team in Class 2A and went 23-4 on the way to sectional and regional titles. They were 23-7 a year ago.
“We’ve won 46 games in the last two years. That’s really good. Our winning percentage is phenomenal,” said O’Dell. “I can’t say I’ve been around two consecutive years like that in all my years of coaching. It’s a great accomplishment.
“It’s one of those things … right now they’re living through the moment and they’re going to be a little disappointed, but 15 years from now they’re going to think, ‘Wow, that was fun.’ …
“Sometimes that gets forgotten at this moment, but it will be something they’ll remember forever.”
All Rights Reserved
LAKEVILLE — The pitchers combined to retire the first 12 batters they faced.
Then the offenses started threatening. But they couldn’t break through against Katelin Augsburger and Ellie Snep.
Scoreless through five innings, the story line became clear: One team would get one timely hit to win the game.
As it turned out, the team was the Wildcats. The time was the bottom of the seventh inning.
Andrea Snavley’s line drive zipped over the head of left fielder Tori Raugh to send Snep to the plate as 10th-ranked Whitko earned a walk-off win to end the season for the Class 2A No. 3 South Adams Starfires in the semi-state semifinal at Newton Park.
SAHS coach Jesse O’Dell couldn’t help but reflect on the five consecutive innings in which his team was unable to come up with the game-breaking hit the Wildcats delivered in the final frame.
“I don’t know how many times we left runners in scoring position today, but we did it,” said O’Dell, whose team was also shut out — 9-0 — against Madison-Grant in last season’s semi-state semifinal at the same venue. “We worked on bunts this whole week. After semi-state last year, we wanted to make sure that was something we could do. And we didn’t do a fantastic job of that.
“Even with that said we had runners in scoring position with less than two out several times and we just couldn’t get that clutch hit.”
South Adams (23-4) put its leadoff hitter on base in the third inning and advanced runners to scoring position in the fourth, fifth, sixth and seventh. But each time they failed to score.
So as Whitko (24-5) came to the plate in the bottom of the seventh, they were left hoping they could earn themselves another chance to swing the bats.
That possibility was looking good when Augsburger struck out pinch hitter Meagan Christoffel to open the inning. But then Snep zipped a single up the middle to put the potential game-winning run on base.
It didn’t take long for Snavley to convert that potential into victory.
The senior first baseman ripped a line drive to left field on the first pitch, and as soon as the ball zoomed over Raugh’s head the game was done. The ball went all the way to the fence, and Snep was already rounding third by the time Raugh tracked it down. Snep scored easily, all the way from first base, leaving a dejected group of Starfires to stroll solemnly off the field, senior first baseman Morgan Alberson with her sunglasses hanging from her mouth.
“I knew one of them was going to hit eventually,” said Whitko coach Michele Garr. “I just didn’t know it was going to be then.
“They were right on it the whole game. Anna (Ousley) had a hit earlier in the game. So, I knew it was just a matter of time for one of them. They just had great timing in the bottom of the seventh.”
The Starfires were unable to find that timing.
Their best opportunity came in the top of the sixth inning, when Casi Evans led off with a single to center field before giving way to courtesy runner Abby Myers. The sophomore took second on a wild pitch, and then Bella Ramirez filled the open first-base spot thanks to a walk.
Alberson bunted the runners over to second and third bases respectively and very nearly beat out the throw to first to load the bases.
But Snep fought back, striking out Katelin Augsburger for the third time in the game and then getting her freshman sister Taylor to ground out back to the circle to end the inning.
“She has nerves of steel, and she trusts her defense,” said Garr of Snep, who struck out 10 and scattered five hits and a walk in the shutout. “So she doesn’t get rattled easy.”
Whitko went on to lose 13-0 to top-ranked Elwood in Saturday evening’s semi-state championship game. The Panthers had fought off Boone Grove 2-0 in the other semifinal.
The only hit Katelin Augsburger allowed prior to the seventh inning was an Ousley double to left field in the fourth. She struck out 13 batters, getting each of the final hitters in the Wildcat order twice, and walked just one.
Kayla LeFever had two of the Starfires’ five hits and was stranded on second base twice. Ramirez was 1-for-2 with a walk and a stolen base and was also twice left standing on second.
The loss ended a second consecutive standout season for the Starfires, who opened with 16 straight wins, spent several weeks as the top-ranked team in Class 2A and went 23-4 on the way to sectional and regional titles. They were 23-7 a year ago.
“We’ve won 46 games in the last two years. That’s really good. Our winning percentage is phenomenal,” said O’Dell. “I can’t say I’ve been around two consecutive years like that in all my years of coaching. It’s a great accomplishment.
“It’s one of those things … right now they’re living through the moment and they’re going to be a little disappointed, but 15 years from now they’re going to think, ‘Wow, that was fun.’ …
“Sometimes that gets forgotten at this moment, but it will be something they’ll remember forever.”
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