With the travel ball season done, Teagan Calkins (center) will return to repping Coupeville’s red and black. (Photo courtesy Shawn Calkins)
They finished the summer season with a bang.
Crunching the ball at the plate, and playing inspired defense, the Whidbey Island Thunder 18U softball squad wrapped its campaign with a second-straight second-place performance at a weekend tourney.
Even without lineup stalwarts Taylor Brotemarkle and Loto Tupu, the all-star team bashed 30 hits across five games, including three home runs from longball lover EmmaJoy Wise.
The Thunder made huge strides this summer, jumping from a 15-25 record last year to 18-14-2 this time around.
That includes back-to-back second-place trophies on top of a 5th place finish at Cascade Nationals and an 8th place finish in the Canada Cup.
One final award, one final team pic. (Photo courtesy Shawn Calkins)
The finale — the Game Day Last Pitch tourney in Kent — started with a brief stumble for the Thunder, but they recovered quickly.
After dropping the opener 6-1, Whidbey rebounded to take the next two games by 11-1 and 10-3 margins.
“The girls came out first game of the pool play, and I think we left our bats back on the Island,” said Thunder coach Matt Suto.
“It happens.
“That didn’t stop us, that just made us mad and fired up our bats,” he added. “We came back the next game and just hit right off the bat and never took a foot off the gas pedal.”
Heading into bracket play Sunday, the Thunder got a measure of revenge, smacking the team they lost to in the opener.
This time out, Whidbey won 9-1, propelling them into the championship bout.
The offense hit a downturn in the final game, however, with a double off the bat of Layla Suto about the only spark.
While he would have liked to end things with a title, Matt Suto came away from the game, the tourney, and the season, very pleased with what he saw.
“I cannot express how proud I am of every single one of these girls,” he said.
The tournament not only brought an end to the season but was also the swan song for the current lineup.
EmmaJoy Wise and flamethrower Grace Swenson will be playing at the collegiate level next year, while several other players are moving on to other teams.
But while the lineup may be revamped next summer, Matt Suto has high hopes.
“I am incredibly honored to be able to be a part of every single one of these girls’ softball journey,” he said.
“Thank you, players and families, for an amazing summer; every single girl contributed in some way, and I am proud of every one of them.
“I cannot thank the families for their support every weekend in allowing myself, Shelly Ryder, and Lance Lopez to coach these wonderful athletes.
“The Thunder squad is still strong; we will just have to find the fit for the girls that we are losing, and I believe we will come back even stronger next year ready to take on any challenge.”
Weekend stats:
Zoe Abbott — Two walks
Kylee Baize — Two singles
Jivanna Bird — One double
Teagan Calkins — Five singles, two doubles
Hayden Davies — Four singles, one walk
Anna Friedrichs — One double, three walks
Madison McMillan — One double, five walks
Ramona Ryder — Three singles, one double
Layla Suto — One singles, two doubles, two walks
Grace Swenson — Two singles, one walk
EmmaJoy Wise — Two singles, three home runs, one walk
That’s a wrap. (Photo courtesy Matt Suto)
Coupeville Sports 