SPOONER — A great season for the Spooner Rails softball team as the girls knocked off a strong Northwestern Tigers team and advanced to the WIAA Division 3 Sectional Championship game at Bloomer on Thursday, May 30.
But in a tense defensive struggle, Spooner’s memorable softball season came to a close as Prescott snuck past the Rails 2-1 in the Sectional Final. Here is a wrap-up of their WIAA Sectional run.
Spooner 3, Northwestern 1
It took 8 innings, but the Spooner girls showed a lot of determination as they held on to top the No. 1-seeded Tigers on the road at Northwestern.
The Rails were led at the plate by Lily Hotchkiss going 4-5 with 1 RBI and Chloe Swonger going 3-4.
Peyton Steines batted 2-3, Annalie Lindgren was 2-4 with 1 RBI, Ava Thompson was 2-4 and Layla Thompson was 1-5 with 1 RBI.
The Rails recorded 14 hits last night and only allowed 4. Pitcher Lindgren was in the circle, throwing all 7 innings and recording 7 strikeouts while allowing 4 hits and walking 2.
“We took the lead in the 3rd inning, going up 1-0, and held that lead until the bottom of the 6th when Northwestern tied it up 1-1,” said coach Brian Amys. “The 6th inning was a huge momentum swing. Northwestern scored 1 and had runners on 2nd and 3rd base with no outs, and we were able to work our way out of it without allowing another run to score.”
The two teams continued to battle, taking the game into extra innings.
In top of the 8th, Swonger led off with a single. Ava Thompson singled. Layla Thompson singled, scoring Swonger, and Hotchkiss singled, scoring Ava Thompson to make it 3-1.
“With Northwestern starting the bottom of the 8th with their lead-off batter, we knew we had to play lights-out defense and we did just that,” said Coach Amys. “With a ground out by the lead-off, strikeout by the second batter and a ground out by the third batter, we were able to seal the deal.
“It was a great team win,” continued Amys. “Annalie threw a tremendous game and our bats were alive all game. We just couldn’t put them all together in 1 inning to score a bunch of runs. Defense played amazing again, making all the routine plays and holding runners out of scoring position.”
On Thursday, May 30, Spooner (18-6) traveled to Bloomer to face Prentice (18-8) for the WIAA Division 3 Sectional championship. Prentice was the second-place team from the Middle Border Conference.
Sectional Final
At Bloomer, a large crowd filled the bleachers to cheer on the teams. Spooner fans got a thrill spark when, in the top of the first inning, Rails freshman batter Lindgren smashed a long homerun over the fence to put the Rails up 1-0.
“Annalie Lindgren went 2-3 at the plate with a HR and our only RBI,” said Amys. “Chloe Swonger was 1-3, and Lily Bauer drew a walk.”
Lindgren also handled Spooner’s pitching, throwing another top-notch game for the Rails.
“Annalie Lindgren was in the circle all night and threw a great game, recording 4 strikeouts and giving up 7 hits and 2 runs,” said Amys.
“It was a great game and a big stage for the team to be on. We are excited to have had the opportunity to play in that type of a game with a trip to State on the line.
“In the end, we didn’t do enough offensively to capitalize. Defensively we made a few errors that we typically don’t make and they were able to benefit, scoring their 2 runs.”
Coach Amys was proud of the girls and the season.
“It was a great season,” he said. “I told the girls the things that we accomplished this year is a huge benefit and impact on the future of our Spooner softball program.
“This was a special group of kids that worked hard all year to get better, supported their teammates and grew so much as softball players and individuals. We are looking forward to next year and building this program.
“Seniors Lily Hotchkiss and Peyton Steines will be missed greatly, but the impact that they have left on this program will be something that will never be forgotten.”
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