MONROE - Some of Monroe's younger players came up with some clutch hits in crunch time to lead Optimists No. 1 to a third-place win over Orangeville 4-3 in a fastpitch tournament Sunday.
The Monroe Optimists No. 1 trailed Orangeville 2-0 heading into the fifth inning. Alyssa Montgomery then delivered a game-tying two-run double. Kasey Gutzmer followed with a go-ahead RBI double to give Monroe a 3-2 lead.
After Orangeville rallied to tie the game in the sixth, Gutzmer again came through for the Optimists No. 1 team. Gutzmer led off with a triple in the bottom of the seventh. Tasha Frie then drove her in with a game-winning walk-off single.
"To our credit our kids stepped up," Monroe coach Dale Buvid said. "Becca Armstrong pitched a strong game. We beat a good Orangeville team who had most of their players."
The Monroe Optimists No. 2 team also finished 2-1 and rallied to beat Brodhead 4-3 in eight innings to win the consolation championship. Kayla Updike pitched a complete game to get the win. Updike hit an RBI triple to score Brandi Trewartha to tie the game in the seventh.
The Optimists No. 1 finished the tournament 2-1 and were on the brink of playing in the championship. Optimists No. 1 lost a 4-3 nine-inning heartbreaker to eventual tournament champion Freeport in a game that went to international rules with a runner starting on second base to start the inning. Freeport went on to win the title with a 3-1 win over Orfordville.
"I'm proud of the way we played," Armstrong said of the tough loss to Freeport. "We knew it was going to come down to one or two runs or one or two outs."
Freeport's Latashia Taylor delivered a two-out game-winning RBI single to left in the ninth.
Early on, it looked like a pitcher's duel. Monroe broke up the pitcher's duel by scoring two runs in the sixth. Frie singled and stole second. Kellie Dahlk then came through with a clutch infield RBI single. Heather Barta singled and Ellie Grossen knocked in the second run on a sacrifice fly to give Monroe a 2-0 lead.
Armstrong retired 10 of the first 11 batters she faced. She gave up two earned runs on six hits. She struck out eight and walked two.
Freeport rallied for three runs in the bottom of the sixth. Armstrong walked two batters and Kelsey Eiseman lined a two-out game-tying two-run double to right center. Kierra Lewis then followed with a go-ahead RBI single up the middle to give Freeport a 3-2 lead.
"I knew I didn't have to worry about the baserunners," Armstrong said. "I had to worry about the batters and focus on getting three outs."
Monroe came back to tie the game and force extra innings after Rebecca Flannery singled. She then stole second and scored the game-tying run on a wild pitch.
"I'm very proud. We played great defensively. They just got a hit at the right time."
The Optimists No. 1 opened the tournament with an 8-5 win over Belmont. Monroe stole six bases and took advantage of five errors by Belmont.
"It's nice to have some team speed," Buvid said. "We have some kids who can run. We will be able to run more than we did last year. We will have to take advantage of that."
Armstrong went the distance and she gave up just two earned runs on six hits. She struck out 14. Armstrong struck out five of the first six batters she faced.
The Optimists No. 1 jumped out to an early lead in the first. Rebecca Flannery beat out an infield single and she stole second. Kelsey Erickson, who was 1-for-2 with three stolen bases, crushed an RBI double to left to give Monroe a 1-0 lead. Kristin McArdle then reached on an error that allowed Erickson to score.
Monroe broke the game open with a five-run sixth. The Monroe Optimists No. 1 used its speed in manufacturing some runs in the sixth. Erickson walked leading off the sixth and she stole second and third. She later scored on an error. Montgomery walked in the sixth and stole third. She scored on a wild pitch. Dahlk, who was 2-for-3, later delivered an RBI double to give Monroe an 8-3 lead.
Buvid said Erickson keyed the big inning by walking and stealing two bases.
"When you have a kid like that who can run and get on, you have a lot of options," Buvid said.
The Optimists No. 2 opened with a 4-3 loss to Orangeville. Monroe's Kendell Niffenegger went 2-for-3 and Chandra McGuire was 1-for-3 with a triple.
The team rebounded by defeating Dodgeville 9-6. McGuire singled in the first. After Paisley Bennett's sacrifice bunt, Trewartha came through with an RBI single and Updike singled to give Monroe a 2-0 lead.
Optimists No. 2 had four players with multi-hit games including Trewartha (3-for-3), Gwen Sutter (3-for-3), Niffenegger (2-for-3) and McGuire (2-for-3).
The Monroe Optimists No. 1 trailed Orangeville 2-0 heading into the fifth inning. Alyssa Montgomery then delivered a game-tying two-run double. Kasey Gutzmer followed with a go-ahead RBI double to give Monroe a 3-2 lead.
After Orangeville rallied to tie the game in the sixth, Gutzmer again came through for the Optimists No. 1 team. Gutzmer led off with a triple in the bottom of the seventh. Tasha Frie then drove her in with a game-winning walk-off single.
"To our credit our kids stepped up," Monroe coach Dale Buvid said. "Becca Armstrong pitched a strong game. We beat a good Orangeville team who had most of their players."
The Monroe Optimists No. 2 team also finished 2-1 and rallied to beat Brodhead 4-3 in eight innings to win the consolation championship. Kayla Updike pitched a complete game to get the win. Updike hit an RBI triple to score Brandi Trewartha to tie the game in the seventh.
The Optimists No. 1 finished the tournament 2-1 and were on the brink of playing in the championship. Optimists No. 1 lost a 4-3 nine-inning heartbreaker to eventual tournament champion Freeport in a game that went to international rules with a runner starting on second base to start the inning. Freeport went on to win the title with a 3-1 win over Orfordville.
"I'm proud of the way we played," Armstrong said of the tough loss to Freeport. "We knew it was going to come down to one or two runs or one or two outs."
Freeport's Latashia Taylor delivered a two-out game-winning RBI single to left in the ninth.
Early on, it looked like a pitcher's duel. Monroe broke up the pitcher's duel by scoring two runs in the sixth. Frie singled and stole second. Kellie Dahlk then came through with a clutch infield RBI single. Heather Barta singled and Ellie Grossen knocked in the second run on a sacrifice fly to give Monroe a 2-0 lead.
Armstrong retired 10 of the first 11 batters she faced. She gave up two earned runs on six hits. She struck out eight and walked two.
Freeport rallied for three runs in the bottom of the sixth. Armstrong walked two batters and Kelsey Eiseman lined a two-out game-tying two-run double to right center. Kierra Lewis then followed with a go-ahead RBI single up the middle to give Freeport a 3-2 lead.
"I knew I didn't have to worry about the baserunners," Armstrong said. "I had to worry about the batters and focus on getting three outs."
Monroe came back to tie the game and force extra innings after Rebecca Flannery singled. She then stole second and scored the game-tying run on a wild pitch.
"I'm very proud. We played great defensively. They just got a hit at the right time."
The Optimists No. 1 opened the tournament with an 8-5 win over Belmont. Monroe stole six bases and took advantage of five errors by Belmont.
"It's nice to have some team speed," Buvid said. "We have some kids who can run. We will be able to run more than we did last year. We will have to take advantage of that."
Armstrong went the distance and she gave up just two earned runs on six hits. She struck out 14. Armstrong struck out five of the first six batters she faced.
The Optimists No. 1 jumped out to an early lead in the first. Rebecca Flannery beat out an infield single and she stole second. Kelsey Erickson, who was 1-for-2 with three stolen bases, crushed an RBI double to left to give Monroe a 1-0 lead. Kristin McArdle then reached on an error that allowed Erickson to score.
Monroe broke the game open with a five-run sixth. The Monroe Optimists No. 1 used its speed in manufacturing some runs in the sixth. Erickson walked leading off the sixth and she stole second and third. She later scored on an error. Montgomery walked in the sixth and stole third. She scored on a wild pitch. Dahlk, who was 2-for-3, later delivered an RBI double to give Monroe an 8-3 lead.
Buvid said Erickson keyed the big inning by walking and stealing two bases.
"When you have a kid like that who can run and get on, you have a lot of options," Buvid said.
The Optimists No. 2 opened with a 4-3 loss to Orangeville. Monroe's Kendell Niffenegger went 2-for-3 and Chandra McGuire was 1-for-3 with a triple.
The team rebounded by defeating Dodgeville 9-6. McGuire singled in the first. After Paisley Bennett's sacrifice bunt, Trewartha came through with an RBI single and Updike singled to give Monroe a 2-0 lead.
Optimists No. 2 had four players with multi-hit games including Trewartha (3-for-3), Gwen Sutter (3-for-3), Niffenegger (2-for-3) and McGuire (2-for-3).
