LISLE, Ill. — With the top of Immaculate Conception Catholic’s order due up and just three outs separating the North Boone softball team from its first ever trip to the state championship, starter Cami Carter asked teammate Lauren Stefek for one simple favor.
“I told Lauren, ‘Just tell me to breathe,’” the Vikings’ senior ace said. “That’s what I was talking to her about. Just tell me to breathe. That’s what she did and I was okay — I let everything go.”
With her nerves calmed, Carter did what she has done all season: send the opposition packing.
The Knights’ Analisa Raffelli swung and missed at an 0-2 pitch for the first out and Lexi Russ grounded out to third baseman Haven Hahn, who threw over perfectly to first baseman Marlee Alderman for the second out.
Then, Carter’s 2-2 pitch froze Anjelina Dwyer, who struck out looking to seal North Boone’s 5-3 win over IC Catholic of Elmhurst in an IHSA 2A Super Sectional on Monday at Benedictine University.
“This feels incredible,” Vikings’ head coach Tim Fleming said. “This team has the best chemistry that I've ever been around. We made a couple of mistakes that led to some runs, but our mentality all year has been that we got your back. It's been an incredible journey, and I'm glad I'm doing it with these guys.”
The fourth seeded Vikings (28-4) won their first sectional title in program history with a 2-0 win over Richmond-Burton on Saturday before quickly following that up with its first super sectional victory over the top-seeded Knights (28-6).
For Carter and the other four seniors on the squad, the victory tastes especially sweet.
“It feels so, so good,” Carter said. “You work so hard for this. It’s been our dream to go this far. We're all so close and we've all played with each other for so long. Even outside of high school, we all play together. We have such a good connection as a team.”
“We never thought we’d make it this far,” Stefek said. “Winning regionals was something that we were set on and then making it this far, it’s just so special for us.”
Carter was elite on the mound against an IC Catholic team that had outscored its opponents 79-13 and was averaging 15.8 runs per game during the postseason.
The righty allowed just three runs (one earned) on six hits and two walks while striking out 11.
“I just put the ball where they couldn’t get it,” Carter said. “I was slowing stuff down and speeding things up. It was really mixed, I threw everything today.”
“I gotta give a lot of respect to IC, that's a heck of a lineup,” Fleming said. “But, we know how hard Cami works, and she's one of the best pitchers in northern Illinois if not in the state. And she really showed out today. There was no easy out there. One through nine was a battle.”
North Boone struck first in the bottom of the second when Danielle Goodman led off by smacking a double to the center-field fence and Marlee Alderman blooped a two-out single into center field to make it 1-0.
“Everyone comes through with hits all of the time,” Stefek said. “Usually through the first at-bats we're not always on, but then we always come through towards the end. It’s so special for us.”
The Knights tied it at one in the third when Russ’s single was followed by a deep-hit double by Dwyer. Carter worked a scoreless fourth before Raffaelli reached on a one-out dropped pop out and scored on Russ’ single into left field. North Boone fell behind 3-1 when Dwyer’s line drive ricocheted off second baseman Sydney Goodman’s glove and allowed Russ to score.
It didn’t take long for the Vikings to respond as Alderman and Olivia Johnson singled back-to-back with one out in the bottom of the fifth before Haven Hahn sent an RBI single back up the middle.
After a line out, Stefek stepped up and took the first pitch for a strike. She drove starter Madelynn Dinino’s second offering into right field and both runners easily got home before the throw to take the 4-2 lead.
“I was trying to work the count and just do something little for my team,” Stefek said. “And then once I got on, it was just so exciting.”
Fleming said that counting on Stefek to come through in the clutch is something that he has grown accustomed to.
“If you need a big at-bat in a big moment, Lauren's the person to do it,” the head coach said. “She kept her head in and she knew what she was hunting for. Early in the game, she just needed to make that adjustment, and she did in a big way.”
Zoe McMillen hit a double over the center fielder with one out in the sixth, but Carter got a strikeout and a pop out to strand the runner in scoring position and preserve the advantage.
“My mindset is always if I can't do it, (my defense) can do it,” Carter said. “Even if they get a hit, I trust my team. But striking them out, it's great. My goal is to strike every girl out if I can.”
Avarie Torres, who had struck out twice, started the bottom of the sixth with a double that nearly went over, clanging off the top of the wall in center. The junior came around to score on Abby Galarza’s line-drive single into center in the next at-bat.
The duo have been two of the Vikings’ hottest hitters this postseason.
“Abby, as a freshman, has come through so much with big hits,” Stefek said. “I'm really proud of her. And Avarie, to finally come through with the big hit was just so special for her.”
Seven of North Boone’s nine hitters recorded a hit with Alderman leading the way with two. The 7-8-9 trio of Alderman, Johnson and Hahn combined to go 4-for-9 with two RBI and three runs.
“That’s what makes this group so special,” Fleming said. “Our top may be slow to start but that middle and bottom of the order, they'll come through in big moments and they really have all postseason.”
Russ had two hits for IC Catholic while Dinino took the loss after throwing six innings and allowing five earned runs on eight hits with a walk and five strikeouts.
North Boone will open the state semifinals against Auburn (25-7-1) on Friday at 5:30 p.m. at the Louisville Slugger Sports Complex in Peoria. Rockridge will face Carterville at 3 p.m. The State Championship will be on Saturday at 3:30 p.m. while the third-place game will be at 1 p.m.
“We talked last night about going out on our own terms,” Fleming said. “We know we get two games no matter what, so we're just going to enjoy the heck out of the state finals and see what happens.”
• BOXSCORE:
NORTH BOONE 5, IC CATHOLIC 3
IC 001 020 0 — 3 6 0
NB 010 031 — 5 8 2
IC CATHOLIC (ab-r-h-rbi) — Raffaelli, ss, 4-1-0-0, Russ, 3b, 4-2-2-1, Dwyer, 1b, 3-0-1-1, Cahill, c, 2-0-1-0, Zito, 2b, 3-0-1-0, Dinino, p, 2-0-0-0, McMillen, lf, 2-0-1-0, Jelic, dh, 2-0-0-0, Berigan, rf, 1-0-0-0, Carrillo, cf, 3-0-0-0. Totals: 26-3-6-2.
NORTH BOONE (ab-r-h-rbi) — S. Goodman, 2b, 3-0-0-0, Stefek, ss, 3-0-1-2, Carter, p, 2-0-0-0, D. Goodman, c, 3-1-1-0, Torres, rf, 3-1-1-0, Galarza, f10, 3-0-1-1, Alderman, 1b, 3-1-2-1, Johnson, cf, 3-1-1-0, Hahn, 3b, 3-1-1-1. Totals: 26-5-8-5.
E: Alderman, Goodman. LOB: IC 6, NB 4. SB: Raffaelli, Hahn. 2B: Dwyer, McMillen, Torres, Goodman. HBP: McMillen.
Pitching: IC, Dinino (L) 6.0-8-5-5-1-5. NB, Carter (W) 7.0-6-3-1-2-11.
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