Whidbey Thunder sluggers take a brief break from crunching base hits to pose for a group pic. (Jackie Saia photo)
They brought the big sticks.
Bashing five home runs over the weekend, the Whidbey Island Thunder 18U softball squad won three of five games at the Cascades National Championship in Olympia.
The offensive barrage was fueled by Lakewood slugger EmmaJoy Wise, who smacked the ball at a sizzlin’ .818 clip while accounting for four of her team’s taters.
Jivanna Bird, a Canadian ace making her Thunder debut, lofted the team’s other home run, while Oak Harbor star Layla Suto hit .778 on the weekend.
Coupeville’s trio was a duet this time around, as shortstop Taylor Brotemarkle sat out while dealing with an injury.
Her Wolf teammates, Teagan Calkins and Madison McMillan, swung hot bats, combining for 10 hits against top-level pitching.
The Thunder came out of the gate hot, rolling to three straight wins while outscoring their foes 26-3.
“The girls came out and played absolutely flawlessly in the first three games of the tournament,” said coach Matt Suto. “Our bats and defense were on fire.”
Things got chippy in the quarterfinals, where Whidbey fell to a Utah team backed by jaw-flapping fans who crossed the line with non-stop verbal abuse.
In a fitting bit of karma, those fans then got to watch their own squad fall apart and come up short of winning the title.
The Thunder, who finished fifth in a 15-team field, closed with a loss to Velocity Fastpitch in a game where every hit seemed to land right in a mitt.
“We would hit it right at them and couldn’t find a gap,” Matt Suto said. “It was extremely frustrating, but it’s something that we have to overcome and deal with.
“Overall, I’m extremely impressed with these girls. Taking fifth place is a true accomplishment by the girls and my coaching staff.”
The trio of Ramona Ryder, Zoe Abbott, and Grace Swenson divvied up the pitching load and all “did a fantastic job,” while Calkins “was an absolute brick wall behind home plate.”
“She battled and blocked everything she could and also had to battle hot heat, and she was absolutely amazing this weekend,” Matt Suto said.
“Every player on the team contributed somewhere or another,” he added.
Whidbey outfielders Anna Friedrichs, Layla Suto, and Hayden Davies closed off the gaps, limiting rival hitters, while Loto Tupu and McMillan “were great on the corners.”
“I can’t thank the girls and the parents enough for a great weekend of ball and showing class after the situation we had to deal with against the team from Utah,” Matt Suto said.
His squad will get back at next weekend, when it travels to Kent for another tournament.
Weekend stats:
Zoe Abbott — One walk
Jivanna Bird — Four singles, one home run
Teagan Calkins — Six singles
Hayden Davies — One single, two walks
Anna Friedrichs — One walk
Jayme Kallio — One single
Madison McMillan — One single, two doubles, one triple, two walks
Ramona Ryder — Two singles, two walks
Layla Suto — Six singles, one double, three walks
Grace Swenson — One single
Loto Tupu — One single, three walks
EmmaJoy Wise — Three singles, two doubles, four home runs, one walk
Coupeville Sports 