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Archive for the ‘Softball’ Category

One win down, one to go

Posted in Little League, Softball, tagged , , , , on June 26, 2023| Leave a Comment »

Chelsi Stevens and her Central Whidbey Little League softball squad are halfway to winning a district title. (Kristi Stevens photo)

They’re halfway to the promised land.

The Central Whidbey Little League Majors softball squad kept its unbeaten streak alive Monday, thrashing Sedro-Woolley 10-0 in the District 11 playoff opener.

Playing in Oak Harbor, the Wolves combined timely hits, a keen eye at the plate, and the overpowering pitching of Adeline Maynes to push their record to 13-0 on the season.

Central Whidbey now has two chances to punch its ticket to the state tourney.

Game #2 of the best-of-three district royal rumble is Tuesday on the fields next to the John Vanderzicht Memorial Pool, with first pitch set for 6:00 PM.

If Sedro stays alive, a winner-take-all game #3 would be Wednesday, same location, same time.

The state tourney goes down in Vancouver July 1-9.

Monday’s game was close for a bit, with the Wolves pulling away to end things early thanks to the 10-run mercy rule.

Central Whidbey put up three runs in the bottom of the first, went scoreless in the second, then slapped on a fourth tally in the third.

Two more runs in the fourth frame stretched things out to 6-0, before a four-run uprising in the bottom of the fifth put a bow on things.

“Team was very resilient and battled every inning,” said Wolf coach Aaron Lucero.

“Had some hiccups I attribute to a few weeks layoff, but we kept fighting and never backed down,” he added. “Big game jitters. Sedro was a tough opponent and made some good plays.

“Luckily we had solid pitching, baserunning, and put pressure on the defense every opportunity we could.”

Sedro’s offense was never able to get much going, as Maynes went the distance in the pitcher’s circle, retiring 12 hitters via a strikeout.

She also scored three times, with seven different Wolves tapping home plate.

Sydney Van Dyke came around twice, while KeeAyra Brown, Emma Cushman, Kennedy Strevel, Ava Lucero, and Cameron Van Dyke also made the scoreboard operator earn their (likely nonexistent) paycheck.

Chelsi Stevens, Allie Powers, Samantha Antonio, Mary Western, Cassandra Powers, Selah Rivera, and Olivia Martin also saw playing time for the Wolves.

“Very proud of these young women,” Aaron Lucero said.

“Told them at the end of the game our work isn’t over and need to come out tomorrow ready to play ball.”

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Thunder rumbles, diamond foes quake

Posted in Softball, tagged , , , , on June 26, 2023| Leave a Comment »

Jada Heaton digs in under the bright lights. (Jennifer Heaton photos)

They’re making some noise on the diamond.

A year after failing to win a game at the National Softball Association state tourney as a 16U team, the Whidbey Island Thunder moved up a division and split four games against top-level competition.

The joint venture between Coupeville and Oak Harbor, with a couple of Sedro-Woolley players tossed into the mix, finished 7th in a 16-team 18U field.

The Whatcom Wolverines claimed top honors, edging Fury Black 2-1 in the championship game.

“Overall, extremely proud of the girls,” said Thunder coach Matt Suto.

“The girls battled through blood, sweat and bruises to make this weekend a successful one for themselves and our program.”

The Thunder? Smacking base hits and collecting plushies everywhere they go.

After making the trip eastward to the Tri-Cities, the Thunder joined 111 other teams, stretched out across six age levels.

Whidbey Island opened play Friday by nipping the Heat 4-3.

“Girls held it together on a late inning drive to secure victory,” Matt Suto said. “Defense stepped up under pressure to help (pitcher Grace) Swenson get the victory.”

Strong glove work was a key all weekend, with four Thunder players — Jada Heaton, McKayla Smith-Day, Teagan Calkins, and Layla Suto — posting 1.000 fielding percentages.

Saturday was a long day, with the Thunder falling 7-1 to WA Avengers Salas, before bouncing back to knock off Freedom Fastpitch 6-2.

That victory was keyed by a three-run bomb off the bat of Jaymie Kallio.

Trailing 2-0 in the bottom of the fourth, the Thunder launched a two-out rally, with six straight batters reaching safely.

Madison McMillan got things started with a single down the right field line, before Swenson walked, and Ramona Ryder, who hit .714 in the tourney, lashed a base-knock.

That set up Kallio, who launched her dinger to dead center, followed by Loto Tupu mashing a double and Lilly Norman slapping a single to put an exclamation point on a five-run rally.

“The girls never gave up and pushed each other to make plays and came out on top,” Matt Suto said.

Softball phenoms (l to r) Taylor Brotemarkle, Layla Suto, Jada Heaton, and Madison McMillan navigate the parking lot in cushy shoes. (Jennifer Heaton photo)

After playing under the lights Saturday night, the Thunder had to come right back in the early hours of Sunday, closing their tourney run with a 10-0 loss to CC Breeze.

“Couldn’t get the bats woken up after shutting down the fields the night before,” Matt Suto said. “But it was a total team effort.

“When girls numbers were called, they came in to play, whether it was pitching, running, or anything.”

After a break, the Thunder get right back it, traveling to Surrey, British Columbia for the Futures Select tourney July 6-10.

 

Weekend stats:

Haylee Armstrong — One walk
Taylor Brotemarkle — One single, one walk
Teagan Calkins — Two singles, one double
Jaymie Kallio — One single, one double, one home run
Allie Lucero — One single
Madison McMillan — Three singles, one double, one walk
Lilly Norman — One single, two walks
Ramona Ryder — Five singles
McKayla Smith-Day — One walk
Layla Suto — Three singles
Grace Swenson — One single, two walks
Loto Tupu — One double, one walk

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CWLL sluggers chase state tourney dreams

Posted in Little League, Softball, tagged , , , , on June 25, 2023| Leave a Comment »

Have bats, will bash. (Photos by JohnsPhotos.net)

Two victories away from a big-time road trip.

The Central Whidbey Little League Majors softball squad carries an undefeated 12-0 record into the District 11 tourney, which runs June 26-28 at Oak Harbor’s Volunteer Park.

The Wolves — featuring 12 Coupeville girls, plus one additional postseason player from both South and North Whidbey — clash with Sedro-Woolley in a best 2-of-3 series.

The games, played on the Juniors field next door to the John Vanderzicht Memorial Pool, kick off at 6:00 PM each night.

Whichever team emerges from the royal rumble holding the district trophy advances to the state championships in Vancouver.

That tournament is July 1-9.

Central Whidbey spent the regular season bashing the living snot out of the softball, scoring in double digits in each of its 12 wins, with two of those coming against Sedro-Woolley.

The Wolves got contributions from everyone on the roster — at the plate, in the field, and from the pitcher’s circle.

Staff ace Adeline Maynes, one of five Wolves likely making their final little league run as they can play high school ball next spring as 8th graders, was lights out all season when flinging heat.

Coupeville coaches, however, are taking the long view, not letting their players get too infatuated with their stellar stats.

You still have to perform if you want to advance.

“I’ve impressed upon our players that it’s a brand new season with postseason play,” Aaron Lucero said.

“While I’m pleased with the result of the work the players have put in thus far, our work is just starting, and we cannot take anyone lightly.

“We have to continue execute on the little things.”

 

Central Whidbey’s playoff roster:

Samantha Antonio
KeeAyra Brown
Emma Cushman
Ava Lucero
Olivia Martin
Adeline Maynes
Allie Powers
Cassandra Powers
Selah Rivera
Chelsi Stevens
Kennedy Strevel
Cameron Van Dyke
Sydney Van Dyke
Mary Western

 

With such a quick turnaround between districts and state, the Wolves are scrambling to raise money to help with the hoped-for trip to Vancouver.

If you’re interested in helping out, checks made out to Central Whidbey Little League can be mailed to P.O. Box 222, Coupeville, WA 98239.

Or you can also use Venmo to pay Wolf Mom Kelly Powers at  https://account.venmo.com/u/Coupeville2029.

If the Wolves don’t make it to state, any money raised will go to help CWLL programs.

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Hit-happy Thunder claim tourney title

Posted in Softball, tagged , , , , on June 19, 2023| Leave a Comment »

Madison McMillan (right) crunched a home run Sunday, impressing teammate Jada Heaton. (Photo courtesy Jennifer Heaton)

Everything was clicking.

The glove work was nearly impeccable. The pitching was overpowering.

And the bats? They were booming.

Putting together a rock-solid run Sunday, the Whidbey Island Thunder 18U softball squad rolled to its first tourney title of the season.

Cruising to 10-5 and 13-0 victories, the sluggers, who feature seven Coupeville players, were Silver Bracket champs at the School’s Out Invite in Mount Vernon.

“I couldn’t be more proud of the girls and this win,” said head coach Matt Suto. “It was a total team effort all weekend, and every player contributed.

“The girls absolutely tore the cover off the ball and played stellar defense behind great pitching from Grace Swenson.”

The flame-throwing hurler, one of two Sedro-Woolley players on the roster, was in control all day.

After blitzing through the Sparks in Sunday’s opening game, Swenson was 99.2% perfect in the championship tilt against the Venom Elite.

She faced just 10 hitters across three innings of work, with the Thunder ending the finale early thanks to the mercy rule.

Nine of those Venom batters went down meekly, with three striking out, and the lone player to reach base did so painfully after getting plunked by the imposing Swenson.

Coupeville’s Taylor Brotemarkle (left) and Sedro-Woolley ace Grace Swenson played strongly all weekend. (Kimberly Brotemarkle photo)

Whidbey broke the championship game open early, slapping five runs on the board in the bottom of the first.

Cranking out the hits, the Thunder got base knocks from Taylor Brotemarkle, Layla Suto, Madison McMillan, Swenson, Loto Tupu, and Jaymie Kallio, and didn’t stop there.

Three more runs in the second — fueled by three hits after they were working with two outs — stretched the lead to 8-0, then Whidbey coasted in for the win.

Layla Suto put a final punctuation mark on things with a resounding double back up the middle, coasting into second base as the Venom coach trudged across the field to surrender to his Thunder counterparts.

The semifinal game was a little closer than the championship game, but not by much.

Whidbey jumped out to a 7-0 lead, ringing up three runs in the top of the first and another four in the second frame to build a lead it wouldn’t relinquish.

The opening assault came thanks to a barrage of extra-base hits, with Brotemarkle and McMillan crunching doubles, while Layla Suto smoked a three-bagger to deep right field.

The coach’s daughter, coming off of an impressive freshman season at Oak Harbor High School, came back around to crack a double an inning later.

Before the Sparks could recover their mojo, the very next hitter, Coupeville’s longball-lovin’ Madison McMillan, went deep.

Belting a home run to dead center, the junior-to-be permanently snuffed out any lingering hopes of a comeback by her rivals.

Overall, the hard-hitting duo accounted for 11 RBIs across Sunday’s two games, with McMillan sending six runners careening for home, while Suto knocked in five of her teammates.

Swenson and Brotemarkle were hot on their heels, each picking up three RBI on the day.

From there, the Thunder defense, anchored by Coupeville catcher Teagan Calkins, went into lock-down mode.

“Just killer defense from the entire team,” Matt Suto said. “This is the momentum we need to roll into Tri-Cities next weekend for the NSA state tournament.”

The champs. (Kimberly Brotemarkle photo)

The Thunder have a 14-woman roster most days, but picked up Oak Harbor’s Addison Morales for the weekend, and she pitched for the team in pool play.

Swenson and Kallio hail from Sedro, while Ramona Ryder, Lilly Norman, McKayla Smith-Day, Layla Suto, and Loto Tupu call Oak Harbor home.

Coupeville players fill out half the roster, with Calkins, McMillan, and Brotemarkle joined by Allie Lucero, Haylee Armstrong, Jada Heaton, and Maya Lucero.

 

Championship bracket stats:

Taylor Brotemarkle — Four singles, one double
Teagan Calkins — One single
Jaymie Kallio — Three singles
Allie Lucero — One single
Maya Lucero — Two singles, one double, one walk
Madison McMillan — Two singles, one double, one home run
Lilly Norman — One single
Ramona Ryder — Two singles
McKayla Smith-Day — One single
Layla Suto — Two singles, two doubles, one triple
Grace Swenson — Three singles, two walks
Loto Tupu — One single, one walk

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Thunder unleashes softball fury

Posted in Softball, tagged , , , , on June 8, 2023| Leave a Comment »

Haylee Armstrong and her chauffeur hit the road for a softball tourney. (Michelle Armstrong photo)

They fire lightning bolts and make the heavens quake with the fury from their bats.

Hitting the travel ball trail this summer, the 14 young women who comprise the Whidbey Island Thunder 18U softball squad are a talented bunch.

Half the team hails from Coupeville, while the other half should convince their parents to move to Cow Town in pursuit of year-round coverage of their athletic exploits.

Jada Heaton, Madison McMillan, and Taylor Brotemarkle, who are all wrapping up their sophomore years at CHS, anchor the squad.

Joining them in the lineup are fellow Wolf sluggers Allie Lucero, Haylee Armstrong, Maya Lucero, and Teagan Calkins.

The Lucero twins graduate Saturday, while Calkins is currently a freshman and Armstrong an 8th grader who started for the CHS varsity while still in middle school.

Mia Farris (far left) is sitting this one out, but fellow Coupeville High School sluggers Madison McMillan, Taylor Brotemarkle, and Jada Heaton are tearing up the softball diamond this summer. (Jennifer Heaton photo)

The pack of Wolves are joined by Oak Harbor’s Layla Suto, Lilly Norman, Ramona Ryder, Mekayla Smith-Day, and Loto Tupu.

Rounding out the Whidbey-based team are Grace Swenson and Jaymie Kallio, who hail from Sedro-Woolley.

Matt Suto is the team’s head coach, while CHS diamond guru Kevin McGranahan is working as his assistant.

The Thunder, who opened play recently, are scheduled to vie in a string of tournaments in June and July.

Their road tour will take them through pit stops in Tacoma, Mount Vernon, the Tri-Cities, and Lynnwood, as well as a trip to Surrey, British Columbia for the Canada Cup.

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