Eagles season ends at sectional

Thursday, May 28, 2009
Brooke Boetjer winds up and gets ready to fire her fastball across home plate Wednesday night.

LIZTON -- It won the West Central Conference and Putnam County Championships this season, and was the favorite to win the sectional; but on Wednesday the South Putnam High School softball team learned a hard lesson -- that nothing is guaranteed.

The Lady Eagles watched their perfect season come to an end at the hands of the Cascade Cadets by a final score of 3-0 in game three of the Tri-West Sectional.

"We had a great regular season and had the first undefeated regular season in school history, but the post season is what counts and we had one of our worst games," SPHS Coach Chris Jones said.

The Lady Eagles were 19-0 heading in Tuesday night's game with the Cadets and finished the season 19-1.

Up until the fourth it was anyone's game. The Lady Eagles got on base early in the top of the first when Krystal Welch drew the walk and made a move to take second when Emily Dabkowski connected with her pitch for a single, but was called out for leaving the bag early, forcing Dabkowski to go back to the batters box. Dabkowski reached on a single moments later and was advanced to second on Oceaia Boetjer's single, but that was as far the Lady Eagles would get to ever crossing home plate.

Boetjer made it to second one other time in the top of the sixth, but couldn't get plated.

In the bottom of the fourth, South Putnam's worst fear came to life -- someone figured out how to hit Brooke Boetjer's fastball.

Brittany Sallee was the first to do it and she did it on the first pitch. Brooke Boetjer went into her motion and as soon as the ball crossed the plate Sallee sent it sailing for a double. Then two batters later, Sallee was crossing the plate on Lauren Cooper's single.

The score was now 1-0 and South Putnam was still in the game, until Emilee Arnold stepped into the batters box. The Cadets had runners on second and third, Cooper advanced to second when Taylor Hueston reached on a error, and Arnold was looked determined to bring in her teammates. She let the first pitch go by, but the second one she sent to the warning track in left field for a two-run double and the final 3-0 count.

Cascade might have shut out South, but it wasn't from a lack of trying on the Lady Eagles end.

South Putnam only collected four hits total for the game, but made contact with the ball in ever inning. It just couldn't put it into play. The Eagles either popped into the air for an easy out or hit it right to the Cadets infielders.

Pitching wise is another story. Up until the fourth frame, Brooke Boetjer seemed like she had total control, but once Cascade figured out how to hit her fastball, she just fell apart. Cascade had only five hits for the night, but the three in the fourth inning were all they needed. Brooke Boetjer finished the night with eight strikeouts.

This season was the best South Putnam has ever produced and they only lose one senior to graduation -- Oceaia Boetjer.

"I'm really proud of Oceaia," Jones said. "She did a lot of great things for us this year the way she handled herself and with her leadership. So I want her to keep her head held high.

"We just need to take this, with mostly everybody coming back, and take it, learn from it, and come back next year ready to do something," Jones said.

At Tri-West High School

Class 2A Softball sectional

South Putnam 000 00 -- 0 4 3

Cascade 000 30 -- 3 5 2

Hueston and Cooper (CA); B. Boetjer and Thompson (SP)

WP -- Hueston

LP -- B. Boetjer

2B -- Arnold (CA), Sallee (CA)

Record -- South Putnam finished the season 19-1 and only lose Oceaia Boetjer to graduation.