KINGSFORD---The Escanaba High School softball team had its season come to a premature end on Friday with a 2-0 loss to the Negaunee Miners in the MHSAA Division Two district semifinals at Kingsford's Lodal Park.
Alyse Robar threw a complete-game three-hitter with ten strikeouts and only one walk for the Miners. She also threw a shutout later on Friday in the championship game, a 3-0 win over the Kingsford Flivvers.
“Unfortunately, we kind of went back to some of our bad habits that we had earlier in the year,” Escanaba Manager Andy Fields said. “We weren't disciplined enough at the plate. Our barrels were kind of dragging through the zone, and you can't do that against a pitcher like Robar.”
The first three innings saw the Eskymos go without several of their veteran players for disciplinary reasons. But the younger girls held their own, with Emma Parlato throwing two innings in the circe and allowing just one run on two hits and a walk.
The Miners took a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the first inning when Olivia Richards smacked a double to left field, scoring Delaney Gladwell, who had walked to start the inning.
The Eskymos had a scoring chance in the top of the fourth inning when Abby Derkos led off with a walk and Breleigh Reinhart put down a bunt single. Reinhart stole second to give Escanaba two runners in scoring position, but Robar struck out the next three Eskymo batters to keep her team ahead, 1-0.
Negaunee added a run in the bottom of the fifth inning on a walk, hit batter, and passed ball on a strikeout.
Escanaba had another chance in the top of the sixth inning when Harlee Coolman led off with a base hit. But the next three girls were set down in order, and then in the seventh inning, Landry Bray hit a one-out single to left field. Robar got a strikeout and groundout to end Escanaba's season.
“At the end of the day, it was a very successful season,” Fields said. “We learned a lot about ourselves. We got better as the year went on. You know, I thought we were playing our best ball at the end of the year. I'm going to miss this class. We had a lot of fun this year. We had fun from open gyms in October all the way through the season. It was just a pleasure.”
Escanaba finishes its season with a 25-9-1 record, playing a schedule that included many of the best teams in all of Michigan. Negaunee improved to 26-8 with its two wins heading into the Division Two regionals.
