Irish take third at state softball tourney

Rosemount adds more accomplishments to run of success

Once the COVID pandemic eased to the point where high school sports could resume, Rosemount’s softball players had their spikes ready to hit the field running.

Few teams if any in Minnesota have had a run like Rosemount the last four seasons, including:

• A 94-10 overall record.

• Two state Class 4A championships and a third-place finish.

• A Ms. Softball Award winner (Jessa Snippes in 2013).

• A rare undefeated season (26-0) in 2023, the first in the state’s large-school class since 1996.

• Four South Suburban Conference championships.

• Four section final appearances.

Last week, during a state tournament where the Irish ultimately finished third, coach Tiffany Rose said she hoped the players could focus on what they had achieved instead of falling short of the prize they wanted.

“It doesn’t happen by accident,” Rose said. “It happens because these girls are hard workers. They’re great players. They don’t want to lose, so they fight to the end. All of those things contribute to the great successes they’ve had. For the girls who were part of that 26-0 team, that’s a tough thing to do and it will always be a great memory for them.”

The Irish’s 2024 season ended 23-5 after they defeated Forest Lake 3-2 in the Class 4A third-place game June 7 at Caswell Park in North Mankato. It was the third time in four years Rosemount beat Forest Lake at state; the other two were championship games in 2021 and 2023.

Rosemount was in the third-place game after a 3-1 loss to New Prague in the semifinals June 6. The day before that, the Irish survived an extra-inning quarterfinal game against Stillwater, winning 8-7 in eight after losing a 7-1 lead.

Rogers defeated New Prague 3-0 in the Class 4A final for the school’s first state softball championship.

Rosemount, which entered the state tournament seeded first, had 11 hits in its game against New Prague, but the Trojans held on long enough to get the big hit they needed – a two-run double in the fourth inning by Jordyn Marsh, who also was the winning pitcher. Marsh’s courtesy runner scored New Prague’s final run later in the inning on a Rosemount error.

The Irish got one run back in the sixth when Jorey Fry reached third base on a single and two-base error. A single by Bryn Anderson scored Fry.

Rosemount loaded the bases with one out in the sixth, but the clutch hitting that was a staple of their season went missing in the state semifinals. Marsh retired the next two batters on a strikeout and popup to shortstop.

“We were probably gripping the bat a little tighter,” Rose said. “It’s hard to win the game with a clutch hit when you’re trying to get the clutch hit. It’s easier when you’re a little looser.”

The Irish had 11 hits against New Prague but left 10 runners on base. Outfielder Cece Hanson, Anderson and infielder Rachel Stone had two hits each.

Hanson led off the first inning with a single and reached third base with one out, but Marsh was able to strand her there. The New Prague pitcher got out of an even more difficult situation in the third, when Harper Chappuis, Hanson and Ari Princl reached on infield singles to load the bases with one out. But Marsh escaped by retiring the next three hitters. A wicked two-out line drive by Fry likely would have scored multiple runs had it not been speared by New Prague shortstop Norah Blaschko.

With the wind blowing in at 15-25 mph, the plan was to hit line drives and hard ground balls and keep it out of the air, Rose said. New Prague had the same issue, but the conditions definitely affected a Rosemount offense with plenty of extra-base power. The Irish had 70 extra-base hits this season including 20 home runs, but the outfield fence was out of reach when the Irish and Trojans played.

Rosemount senior Morgan Honeycutt homered in the fifth inning of the third-place game against Forest Lake, extending the Irish’s lead to 3-0. They also scored single runs in the second and third innings when Princl and Honeycutt worked for bases-loaded walks.

Fry, the Irish’s pitcher, held Forest Lake to four hits but walked six. She struck out the last two Rangers hitters in the sixth inning when they had the potential go-ahead run on base.

Grace Nosan’s single in the eighth inning scored pinch-runner Anna Price from second base in the Irish’s quarterfinal victory over Stillwater. Price ran for Kayla Bartol, who singled with one out. Price promptly stole second base to put herself in scoring position.

Bartol’s grand slam was the highlight of Rosemount’s seven-run second inning. Two more runs scored on a single by Hanson and another scored when Chappuis walked with the bases loaded.

Stillwater responded with four runs in the fifth inning and two in the sixth to tie the game.

Fry and Hanson were named to the Class 4A all-tournament team. Fry will be back as a senior next year while Hanson, who also played for Rosemount in the state girls hockey tournament the last two years, is headed to South Dakota State University to play softball.