JUDA - Amber Ramos was one strike away from a five-inning perfect game Thursday when Juda-Albany softball coach Bill Davis loudly implored his senior pitcher to dig deep and really bring the heat.
Ramos was only too happy to oblige, firing one of her best heaters of the game to strike out Argyle's Kim Pink and end Juda-Albany's 11-0 victory.
"It just fires me up more," Ramos said of her head coach and uncle challenging her in front of a nice crowd at Juda Community Park.
How hard did she throw that final pitch?
"I have no idea, but I wound up, leaned back and threw it as hard as I could," Ramos said.
"I wanted to see her take the last (batter) herself," Davis said. "I think that's the fitting end to (a perfect game)."
That last laser put a ribbon on Ramos' second no-hitter in three days - the first one of the seven-inning variety in a 10-0 thumping of Barneveld on Tuesday.
Throw in a one-hit, 18-strikeout victory against Monticello on Monday and it has easily been the best week of another stellar season for Ramos.
"Yeah, not too bad," she quipped of her recent efforts. "I was just really feeling it this week. It just felt so natural. I really don't know what's up this week. I'm just throwing harder and (opponents) are having trouble keeping up with (her fastball)."
That was certainly the case for an Argyle team that took the Panthers (10-5, 6-0 Six Rivers East) to extra innings on April 17 before losing 8-1 in eight innings. The Orioles' only well-hit ball came off the bat of sophomore pitcher Jessica Treuthardt - a liner that Juda-Albany senior second baseman Katlyn DeVoe snared with ease for the second out of the fourth inning.
Ramos finished with seven strikeouts.
"It's so nice to have such a great pitcher," said DeVoe, adding that a five-run first-inning outburst against Treuthardt fueled the Panthers' growing confidence in their offense.
Juda-Albany sent 10 batters to the plate in the first, when it was aided by four Orioles errors. Ramos' double, senior catcher C.J. Dunwiddie's two-run single and junior shortstop Jessica Rackow's RBI single were the big hits in the inning.
"In that first inning when we were up 5-0, it's 'OK, well, nobody is going to be able to score five runs on Amber,'" DeVoe said. "It's just really nice because then all the pressure is off. We did a great job hitting and that makes it that much easier to have more fun."
Juda-Albany produced 13 hits in all. Treuthardt wasn't helped by a shaky Orioles defense which has lost the left side of its infield - junior shortstop Kayla Ostby and senior third baseman Katie Dammen - to injuries.
"They got on us and we just seemed frazzled and never got settled down," said Argyle coach Dan Treuthardt, whose team dropped to 3-2 in the Six Rivers East. "That's not the team we are. We're a better team than that."
Ramos finished 3-for-4 with two doubles and Dunwiddie was 2-for-3 to lead a Juda-Albany offense which has outscored its opponents 56-2 during a six-game winning streak.
"It's not just timely hitting, it's getting the three, four hits in a row like we knew we could (while struggling) at the beginning of the year," Davis said. "Now we're just putting everything together."
And naturally, all the run support makes Ramos even more difficult to deal with for opposing hitters.
"You can just let loose and have fun and play the game," Ramos said of the recent run support provided by her teammates. "We're having a lot of fun."
Monticello 5, Barneveld 4
BARNEVELD - Trailing 4-1 and down to their last three outs, the Ponies (9-2, 4-2 Six Rivers East) rallied for four runs in the top of the seventh.
Sophomore Marissa Berg went 2-for-4 with a home run and sophomore Claire Bruns pitched 3 1/3 innings of scoreless relief to get the win. Junior Jordyn Kubly and freshman Courtney Leuzinger each went 2-for-3 for the Ponies.
Pecatonica 17,
Black Hawk 4
BLANCHARDVILLE - Senior Michalla Boese went 2-for-2 with three RBIs to lead the Vikings (6-6, 2-3 Six Rivers East), who scored six runs in the first inning and four in the second to take a 10-3 lead.
"Our girls put the ball in play and forced Black Hawk to make mistakes," Pecatonica coach Chuck Meyer said. "That is what softball is about."
Pecatonica freshman Emily Scoville pitched three innings and gave up one earned run on two hits. She struck out four and walked three. Sophomore Julia Meyer tossed two innings of shutout relief.
Sophomore Tessa Cushman, junior Abby Schiferl and junior Kelly Neuenschwander had hits for the Warriors.
Ramos was only too happy to oblige, firing one of her best heaters of the game to strike out Argyle's Kim Pink and end Juda-Albany's 11-0 victory.
"It just fires me up more," Ramos said of her head coach and uncle challenging her in front of a nice crowd at Juda Community Park.
How hard did she throw that final pitch?
"I have no idea, but I wound up, leaned back and threw it as hard as I could," Ramos said.
"I wanted to see her take the last (batter) herself," Davis said. "I think that's the fitting end to (a perfect game)."
That last laser put a ribbon on Ramos' second no-hitter in three days - the first one of the seven-inning variety in a 10-0 thumping of Barneveld on Tuesday.
Throw in a one-hit, 18-strikeout victory against Monticello on Monday and it has easily been the best week of another stellar season for Ramos.
"Yeah, not too bad," she quipped of her recent efforts. "I was just really feeling it this week. It just felt so natural. I really don't know what's up this week. I'm just throwing harder and (opponents) are having trouble keeping up with (her fastball)."
That was certainly the case for an Argyle team that took the Panthers (10-5, 6-0 Six Rivers East) to extra innings on April 17 before losing 8-1 in eight innings. The Orioles' only well-hit ball came off the bat of sophomore pitcher Jessica Treuthardt - a liner that Juda-Albany senior second baseman Katlyn DeVoe snared with ease for the second out of the fourth inning.
Ramos finished with seven strikeouts.
"It's so nice to have such a great pitcher," said DeVoe, adding that a five-run first-inning outburst against Treuthardt fueled the Panthers' growing confidence in their offense.
Juda-Albany sent 10 batters to the plate in the first, when it was aided by four Orioles errors. Ramos' double, senior catcher C.J. Dunwiddie's two-run single and junior shortstop Jessica Rackow's RBI single were the big hits in the inning.
"In that first inning when we were up 5-0, it's 'OK, well, nobody is going to be able to score five runs on Amber,'" DeVoe said. "It's just really nice because then all the pressure is off. We did a great job hitting and that makes it that much easier to have more fun."
Juda-Albany produced 13 hits in all. Treuthardt wasn't helped by a shaky Orioles defense which has lost the left side of its infield - junior shortstop Kayla Ostby and senior third baseman Katie Dammen - to injuries.
"They got on us and we just seemed frazzled and never got settled down," said Argyle coach Dan Treuthardt, whose team dropped to 3-2 in the Six Rivers East. "That's not the team we are. We're a better team than that."
Ramos finished 3-for-4 with two doubles and Dunwiddie was 2-for-3 to lead a Juda-Albany offense which has outscored its opponents 56-2 during a six-game winning streak.
"It's not just timely hitting, it's getting the three, four hits in a row like we knew we could (while struggling) at the beginning of the year," Davis said. "Now we're just putting everything together."
And naturally, all the run support makes Ramos even more difficult to deal with for opposing hitters.
"You can just let loose and have fun and play the game," Ramos said of the recent run support provided by her teammates. "We're having a lot of fun."
Monticello 5, Barneveld 4
BARNEVELD - Trailing 4-1 and down to their last three outs, the Ponies (9-2, 4-2 Six Rivers East) rallied for four runs in the top of the seventh.
Sophomore Marissa Berg went 2-for-4 with a home run and sophomore Claire Bruns pitched 3 1/3 innings of scoreless relief to get the win. Junior Jordyn Kubly and freshman Courtney Leuzinger each went 2-for-3 for the Ponies.
Pecatonica 17,
Black Hawk 4
BLANCHARDVILLE - Senior Michalla Boese went 2-for-2 with three RBIs to lead the Vikings (6-6, 2-3 Six Rivers East), who scored six runs in the first inning and four in the second to take a 10-3 lead.
"Our girls put the ball in play and forced Black Hawk to make mistakes," Pecatonica coach Chuck Meyer said. "That is what softball is about."
Pecatonica freshman Emily Scoville pitched three innings and gave up one earned run on two hits. She struck out four and walked three. Sophomore Julia Meyer tossed two innings of shutout relief.
Sophomore Tessa Cushman, junior Abby Schiferl and junior Kelly Neuenschwander had hits for the Warriors.
