END OF THE LINE: Escanaba Girls Fall In Final 4

EAST LANSING---Heading into Final Four weekend at Michigan State University on Thursday, most softball observers thought that the Escanaba Eskymos and Livonia Ladywood Blazers would meet in Saturday's state championship game.

Not so fast. Two other teams had more than a little bit to say about that. The Vicksburg Bulldogs rallied from a 5-0 deficit to upset Ladywood, 7-5, and then the Richmond Blue Devils scored three runs in the fifth inning to eliminate the Eskymos, 5-2.

The pivitol inning was the fifth, when the Eskymos and Blue Devils were tied at 2-2. Richmond's Emma Caperton was safe on an error, and then ninth-batter Amy Thueme put down a bunt that the Eskymos threw away.

The throw back to the infield was in time to reture Thueme at second base, but her spikes went into Eskymo shortstop Callie Heller.

Heller was hurt, and while she lie there, the play continued, as Caperton kept running and scored. Thueme was originally called out at second base, but the umpires conferred, and ruled their was obstruction on the play.

Thueme went back to second base, and the Richmond girls went to work against Escanaba left-hander Taylor Rathe.

Lindsay Schweiger, Allison Swantek, and Erin Shuboy had back-to-back-to-back hits to drive in two more runs, and Richmond cruised to the win from there.

Escanaba Manager Jamie Segorski was upset with how that inning unfolded.

"The hard part is, first of all, that girl (Caperton) never should have been on that base because the ball hit her when she was in the batter's box and bounced into fair territory and we've got three umpires on the field that didn't see it," Segorski said. "So, the next girl comes up with a lead runner and they put down a bunt. We kind of throw it away and people got hung up at first base, and we got the out (at second base)."

And this is where Segorski was particularly unhappy.

"He called her (Theume) safe for obstruction that I guess I really didn't understand their interpretation or the meaning of the rule," Segorski said. "Obstruction isn't obstruction when there's a play being made. Obstruction is when there's a fielder standing in the runner's way without the ball. She (first baseman Kayla VanPortfliet) was making a play for the ball. That's why our second baseman was covering a bunt."

And Segorski wasn't done yet.

"They gave her that bag and they got another run," Segorski said. "There was another third strike, a swinging strike, where we have an umpire standing straight down the line and I don't know what he was watching. I think he was looking the other way at the runner or something. It makes it frustrating. They (umpires) gave them five outs, and we gave them three runs."

What was Heller's recollection of getting spiked in the ankle?

"Ouch," Heller said. "That's really what I've got to say. I just know it hurt really bad and I went down and I couldn't get back up. The whole rest of the game, it was absolutely killing me."

"Right now, it's pretty swollen, but I just wanted to keep playing. I had to get through the game. I had to be there for my girls."

The plays as described above turned the game in Richmond's favor, but the Eskymos had plenty of chances to grab a big lead early in the game. They stranded eight baserunners, however...two in each of the first four innings.

Escanaba's runs came in the second inning when JJ Laviolette ripped a triple and scored on a squeeze by Taylor Segorski...and in the third inning, when Katie Ross doubled and scored when a Taylor Gauthier bunt was thrown over the third baseman's head.

Eskymo pitcher Taylor Rathe had trouble closing out Blue Devil batters that had two strikes on them, and Richmond Coach Howard Stuart sensed that the right side of the Eskymo defense was struggling. So, Stuart, who has c0ached for 38 years and has won 953 games at Richmond, had his girls bunt and hit to the right side of the infield.

The mistakes the team made didn't help Rathe, who allowed nine hits in the contest but managed to pitch the entire game. She struck out four batters and walked one.

"It's a tough loss after such a great season that we had," Rathe said. "They just outhit us."

Richmond improved to 31-9 on the season. Rachel McKiernon and Schweiger each had two hits. And Shuboy, a freshman pitcher, threw the whole game, allowing seven hits, striming out seven Eskymo batters and walking just one.

Heller was one of five Eskymo seniors who played their final game on Thursday.

"I'm disappointed, but I'm not disappointed at the same time because our team had a great season," she said. "Very talented group of girls. I'm so proud of each and every one of them. I'm grateful for this opportunity and the opportunity that I had to play these past four years. It's been great."

Coach Segorski put it simply after his team finished with a 36-3-1 record.

"They (Richmond) are a good team, don't get me wrong," he said. "They're fantastic and very well coached. I give them a ton of credit. He's a Hall of Fame coach (Stuart) and it's sad when he comes over for what was happening on the field. He sees the play, and he sees the call. He's apolgizing up and down, and isn't the way he wanted to win it."

Click the thumbnails in the ARTICLE HIGHLIGHTS box above to see photos and videos taken by Mike Dagenais, and to hear post-game interviews.

Date	Time	Opponent	Score	Record

3/25	4:00 PM	Gladstone Braves	5 - 2 (W)	1-0

3/25	7:00 PM	Negaunee Miners	15 - 0 (W)	2-0

3/26	12:00 PM	at Marquette Redmen	2 - 2 (T)	2-0-1

3/26	12:00 PM	at Marquette Redmen	2 - 2 (T)	2-0-1

4/15	5:00 PM	at GTE, Wis.	14 - 6 (W)	3-0-1

4/16	1:00 PM	LaCrosse Logan, Wis.	7 - 2 (W)	4-0-1

4/16	4:00 PM	Merill, Wis.	7 - 6 (W)	5-0-1

4/21	4:00 PM	Manistique Emeralds	10 - 1 (W)	6-0-1

4/21	6:00 PM	Manistique Emeralds	11 - 0 (W)	7-0-1

4/23	9:00 AM	Marquette Redmen	3 - 5 (L)	7-1-1

4/23	11:00 AM	Kingsford Flivvers	15 - 1 (W)	8-1-1

4/23	1:00 PM	Norway Knights	6 - 0 (W)	9-1-1

4/27	4:00 PM	at Rapid River Rockets	4 - 0 (W)	10-1-1

4/27	6:00 PM	at Rapid River Rockets	10 - 0 (W)	11-1-1

4/30	9:30 AM	at Birmingham Seaholm	10 - 0 (W)	12-1-1

4/30	12:30 PM	at L'Anse Creuse HS	1 - 0 (W)	13-1-1

4/30	4:00 PM	at Livonia Ladywood HS	4 - 3 (W)	14-1-1

5/1	11:30 AM	Alpena Wildcats	- (T)	RAIN

5/3	4:00 PM	Kingsford Flivvers	9 - 4 (W)	15-1-1

5/3	6:00 PM	Kingsford Flivvers	- (T)	RAIN

5/6	4:00 PM	at Alpena Wildcats	10 - 2 (W)	16-1-1

5/7	10:00 AM	at Grayling Vikings	4 - 0 (W)	17-1-1

5/7	1:00 PM	Garden City High School	12 - 2 (W)	18-1-1

5/7	3:00 PM	at Alpena Wildcats	1 - 0 (W)	19-1-1

5/10	4:00 PM	at Kingsford Flivvers	15 - 1 (W)	20-1-1

5/10	6:00 PM	at Kingsford Flivvers	12 - 0 (W)	21-1-1

5/13	6:00 PM	Marshfield High School	9 - 1 (W)	22-1-1

5/14	9:30 AM	Rapid River Rockets	1 - 6 (L)	22-2-1

5/14	1:30 PM	Neenah, Wis.	13 - 4 (W)	23-2-1

5/14	3:30 PM	Gladstone Braves	10 - 0 (W)	24-2-1

5/16	4:00 PM	Marquette Redmen	6 - 2 (W)	25-2-1

5/16	6:00 PM	Marquette Redmen	3 - 2 (W)	26-2-1

5/17	4:00 PM	Gladstone Braves	10 - 0 (W)	27-2-1

5/17	6:00 PM	Gladstone Braves	6 - 0 (W)	28-2-1

5/19	4:00 PM	at Negaunee Miners	4 - 0 (W)	29-2-1

5/19	6:00 PM	at Negaunee Miners	7 - 0 (W)	30-2-1

5/24	4:00 PM	at Gladstone Braves	- (T)	RAIN

5/24	6:00 PM	at Gladstone Braves	- (T)	RAIN

5/26	4:00 PM	at Marquette Redmen	- (T)	RAIN

5/26	6:00 PM	at Marquette Redmen	- (T)	RAIN

5/31	5:00 PM	Kingsford Flivvers	10 - 0 (W)	31-2-1

6/3	2:00 PM	Cheboygan Chiefs	9 - 1 (W)	32-2-1

6/3	4:00 PM	Petoskey Northmen	3 - 0 (W)	33-2-1

6/11	10:00 AM	Whitehall Vikings	13 - 3 (W)	34-2-1

6/11	2:00 PM	Muskegon Oakridge	10 - 6 (W)	35-2-1

6/14	2:00 PM	Saginaw Swan Valley	- (T)