BELMONT — Pecatonica entered the 2022 spring season not sure of where they would reside at the end of the season. With stalwart programs like Barneveld, Argyle and Juda-Albany in the Six Rivers East, and ranked Six Rivers West teams Highland and Belmont in the same WIAA Division 4 sectional, the playoffs would be a gauntlet for whichever program made it out.
“The softball around here is so tough right now,” said Dan Schraepfer, Pecatonica’s first-year head coach. “Our conference is tough. I know our record isn’t the greatest, but all of these teams have great pitching.”
The Vikings finished fourth in conference, with Barneveld winning the league title and Argyle taking second. Come the postseason, however, players stepped up when the moment presented itself — and that includes the stunning 3-2 win over Belmont in the sectional semifinal May 31.
Having already beaten No. 5-seed Seneca 2-1, and top-seeded Highland 3-1 in the regionals. The win over Highland avenged an 11-6 loss on May 12.
Earlier this season on April 9, Belmont trounced Pecatonica 20-5. But the Vikings were a different team in those cold, early days of the spring. First off, ace pitcher Chloe Schraepfer didn’t pitch, and the three reserve hurlers for the Vikings allowed 21 hits, seven walks and 19 earned runs in just five innings.
On May 31, Schraepfer had command of the zone, scattering seven hits and two walks while striking out four.
The Vikings got a score right off the bat in the first inning, as a leadoff walk to Trinity Gruenenfelder turned into a run on a Lexi Peterson double.
The score stayed until Ashley Freeman smacked a 2-run homer to center field in the bottom of the fourth, which put the host Braves ahead by a run.
In the top of the sixth, senior Tessa Green singled to center, moved to second on a passed ball, and scored on a throwing error, knotting the game at 2-2.
Chloe Schraepfer then sat down Belmont in order in the bottom half of the frame on a strikeout and two grounders.
In the top of the seventh, the Vikings had their 8-9-1 batters scheduled to hit. Coach Schraepfer quickly evaluated his options, and with one out, replaced 9-hitter Anna Chrowtowski with freshman Diana Hendrickson.
The roll of the dice paid off. On a 1-2 count, Hendrickson homered to left to put the Vikings ahead, and widen the eyes of the Braves.
“It was the right call at the right time. She came through big for us,” coach Scraepfer said. “She plays a lot of travel ball, so I have a lot of faith in her. My DP (Chrowtowski) was in there, and in the last game she grounded out twice on good contact, but (against Belmont) she struck out twice. I thought, what do we got to lose?”
In the final half-inning, Chloe Schraepfer got the first two hitters to pop out before giving up a double to left. Two pitches later, she induced another pop out, and the Vikings erupted in jubilee.
“I’ve been preaching all year in believing in themselves and grow their confidence,” coach Schraepfer said. “They are buying into it right now, and it’s the right time of the year. Their confidence has come up so high right now and the sky is the limit.
The win positioned the Vikings just one win from the WIAA state tournament for the first time since their championship run in 1993.
The last team in their path? Barneveld. In two meetings this year, the Eagles won each by a grand total of three runs.
“They are kind of our nemesis. I hope it’s a great game — we’ve played them tough this year each time we’ve played them. It’s the team we want to see,” coach Schraepfer said. “We’re the underdogs, and that’s right where we want to be in the tournament. I’m so proud of them. And at the end of the day, someone from the Six Rivers is going to state, and I hope it’s us.”
The winner of the June 2 sectional final will advance to the state tournament at Goodman Diamond in Madison. The entire state tournament lasts from June 9-11, with the Division 5 semifinals set for 8 a.m. on June 10, and the title game at 11 a.m. on June 11.
“Hopefully we’ve got a few more in us yet,” coach Schraepfer said.
