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Esky Little Leaguers Battle; Settle For 3rd In State
 ESSEXVILLE, Mich.---Third place will have to do for the Escanaba Little League All-Stars (age 11-12) after they came up short in the state semifinals on Monday. The girls fell behind by four runs early, battled back to make a game of it, but in the end, lost to the District Seven champions from St. Clair, 6-4, in downstate Essexville. North Ottawa beat Rogers City, 5-4, in the other semifinal.  "We played the best game that we could play," Salo said. "We hit the ball, and most importantly, we battled back. We hit the ball. "I think we played one our best games today. I've got great girls. They'll be back practicing before I even want to be on the field." St. Clair has a powerful middle-of-the-lineup, and they took advantage of a couple of Escanaba miscues to take a 4-0 lead in the top of the second inning.  
Savannah Barron smokes a triple to the fence.
Then another run scored when a ground ball was fielded properly, but the throw pulled first baseman Gabi Salo off the bag. Then Alexa Rutledge got an RBI single and it was a 4-0 St. Clair lead. Still, Coach Salo thought his defense was good enough, it's just that St. Clair has a team that puts the bat on the ball and makes you pay for those mistakes.  Escanaba didn't give up. Salo led off the bottom of the second with a hit, then Jalin Olson was hit by a pitch. Maddie Kolich drove in one run with a ground ball, and Emily Block bunted home a second run. In the third inning, Bohm ripped an RBI double to make it 5-2, but Escanaba rallied again in the bottom of the third inning. Savannah Barron smacked a one-out triple to the fence and she scored on a groundout to cut the deficit to 5-3. Maddy Griffin kept the inning going with a base hit, and she stole both second and third base. On the second steal, there was a throwing error that allowed Griffin to score. Meanwhile, Edington and her defense were working hard to keep the game close. 
Savannah Barron robs St. Clair of two runs.
And in the fifth inning, Barron got to a hard-hit grounder by Young and made the throw to third base, leaving the bases l0aded. "She made a heck of a back-handed stab," Coach Salo said. "That got us out of a big jam that probably would have ended the game for us."  On that play, the ball skipped into the outfield, and Wilson made it to third base, carrying the game's tying run. That brought up Edington, who has been the team's most consistent batter throughout the tournament run. She battled St. Clair lefty Alexis Churchill in an at-bat that took more than three full minutes, an eternity in fast-pitch softball. At one point, Edington fouled off six straight pitches. Eventually, though, she struck out to end the inning. 
Katie Wilson gets a bunt single in fifth inning.
"I told the girls that we'll take five minutes, and we're allowed to cry," Coach Salo said. "But after that, it's time to put a smile on their faces. We played a lot of softball. We lost to a state titlist last year, and I think they (St. Clair) will win the state title tomorrow." ESCANABA 9/10 GIRLS WIN DISTRICT OPENER---The smallest of the Eskymo softball players got off to a good start Monday as the Minor Softball All-Stars beat Kingsford, 19-4, at Lemmerand Park. Nicole Kamin had three hits, including a two-run home run to lead Escanaba. She also pitched three innings, striking out three batters. Ally Jackson pitched the first and fourth innings for Escanaba, striking out all six outs. Jackson also had a bunt single and a double. Escanaba faces Gladstone Tuesday night at 7:00. WCHT's Ron Plum will provide "bonus radio coverage" of this contest. Click the thumbnails in the ARTICLE HIGHLIGHTS box to see photos and videos from the game, and listen to a few audio highlights. Thanks to Cheri Lehto for taking all of the pictures and videos during the tournament.  |
