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Posts Tagged ‘hit parade’

Deadly diamond divas ding Darrington

Posted in Softball, tagged , , , , , , on April 22, 2024| Leave a Comment »

Bailey Thule was one of 11 Wolves to reach base Monday in a 21-1 win at Darrington. (Jackie Saia photo)

When the dam broke … damn.

The Coupeville High School varsity softball squad went down 1-2-3 in the top of the first inning Monday in Darrington, continuing a cold trend at the plate from its last game.

Then, boom, back to reality.

The Wolves unloaded on the Loggers during a 17-batter, 14-run top of the second — only ending things by intentionally having a runner leave early for the third out — and were well on their way to a 21-1 win mercy-ruled after four frames.

The victory, coming against the team closest to it in the standings, lifts CHS to 6-0 in Northwest 2B/1B League play, 9-4 overall.

The Wolves haven’t technically clinched the league title, with a game-and-a-half lead on Darrington and Friday Harbor, which both sit at 5-2, with four conference tilts to play.

But they’ve also outscored the Loggers and Wolverines 47-2 across three wins, so Vegas ain’t exactly taking too many bets on CHS falling apart down the stretch run.

Kevin McGranahan’s squad, which starts three 8th graders and two freshmen, can put things to rest this week, with home games against Orcas Island Tuesday, Concrete Thursday, and Darrington Saturday.

Haylee Armstrong (left) and Shania Kenney celebrate another victory. (Michelle Armstrong photo)

For a brief moment in the Darrington sunshine, the Loggers entertained hopes of an upset. Then reality came crashing down.

Up 1-0 after an inning of play, the home team stumbled to start the second frame, then a tsunami of base knocks washed all of its hopes and dreams away.

Madison McMillan, Teagan Calkins, and Sydney Van Dyke walked to juice the bases, before Joltin’ Jada Heaton got spectacular.

Belting a two-run single to center — the first of two multi-RBI hits she would have in the inning — Jennifer’s favorite daughter put her team ahead for good.

From there, the runs came fast and furious.

Ava Lucero plated one on an RBI groundout, before Mia Farris crunched a two-run double to center and McMillan sliced a two-run single to right.

Van Dyke sent a teammate scampering home on an infield single to make it 8-1, then Heaton arrived back at the plate, intent on terrorizing the Loggers again.

This time the junior outfielder pasted a two-run triple to straightaway center, the ball merrily skipping away into the deepest, darkest regions of the field.

To which Farris told her best bud, if you can do it, so can I, welcoming a new pitcher to the circle by unleashing her own two-run triple.

After scratching out its one run early, Darrington could do little against Wolf hurlers Adeline Maynes and Haylee Armstrong, who combined to whiff four.

Content to coast in with the win, the Wolves plated three more in the third, and another four in the fourth to enforce the mercy rule.

Softballs incoming! (Kevin McGranahan photo)

The final rally featured Mia the Magnificent tagging a ball off the top of the wall, missing a home run by inches, before McMillan cleared the fences with a towering tater.

The deadly duo was likely aiming at the snowy peaks which can be seen from Darrington’s diamond.

“Mia wanted me to tell you that her double was crushed to Mt. Whitehorse, but at the last minute Elsa from Frozen grabbed it and threw it back in so it only counted as a double,” McGranahan said with a laugh.

 

Monday stats:

Capri Anter — One walk
Haylee Armstrong — One single, one walk
Taylor Brotemarkle — One single
Teagan Calkins — Two singles, one walk
Mia Farris — Two doubles, one triple
Jada Heaton — One single, one triple
Ava Lucero — One single
Adeline Maynes — One walk
Madison McMillan — One home run, two singles, one walk
Bailey Thule — One walk
Sydney Van Dyke — Two singles, one walk

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Mama said knock you out

Posted in Little League, Softball, tagged , , , , , on June 1, 2019| Leave a Comment »

“We score, score, and score some more!!” (Jackie Saia photo)

Bring on all-stars!

The Central Whidbey Little League Majors softball squad ended the regular season Saturday with an avalanche of runs, destroying host Sedro-Woolley 22-2.

And it was actually even more of a rout that that.

While the mercy rule ended the game after three innings, the two teams played an unofficial extra inning in which Central Whidbey tuned up their rivals 9-0.

With the win, the Hammerheads closed the regular season at 15-2, having outscored foes 270-81.

Or 279-81, if we count the unofficial inning … which we probably won’t.

Next up for Central Whidbey is the district all-star tournament, which will be played at Coupeville’s Rhododendron Park starting June 14.

Saturday afternoon, the Hammerheads mixed and matched pitchers, getting Chloe Marzocca and Savina Wells two innings of work apiece, then sitting back and admiring the view as their hurlers got nasty.

The dynamic duo each recorded three strikeouts, while also pulling off eye-popping defensive gems.

Marzocca snagged a hard shot up the middle which took a wild hop and shot up, smacking her just below the knee.

Ignoring the sting, she stayed in the play, plucking the offending ball off the turf and gunning down the Sedro-Woolley hitter crashing for first base.

Not to be outdone, Wells sprawled out while on the fly, yanking a ball out of air seconds before it hit the diamond while close to foul territory down the third base side.

“Ball probably never got more then four feet off the ground, but Savina made it look easy,” said visibly-impressed Central Whidbey coach Fred Farris.

It was that kind of day for everyone in a Hammerhead uniform.

“Girls came to play, and were in all-star form,” Farris said. “Great pitching by both Savina and Chloe, and Savina and Teagan (Calkins) both were near perfect behind the plate.

“Allison Nastali showed great range at second making two outstanding plays, and Mia (Farris) squeezed everything at first. Great team win!”

The game was virtually over before it began, as Central Whidbey dumped a fast 14 runs on the scoreboard in the top of the first.

Seven more in the second, then a single, solitary score in the top of the third pushed the lead all the way out to 22-0, before Sedro scratched out its only runs in the bottom half of the final official frame.

The Hammerheads racked up 17 hits, with Wells bashing five, including a double, while Brionna Blouin smoked four base-knocks of her own.

Blouin loves extra-base hits, and two of her lasers were two-baggers, with one clearing the bases.

Madison McMillan, Mayleen Weatherford, and Mia Farris added two hits apiece, with Weatherford cranking out a triple, while Aleksia Jump and Calkins chipped in with singles.

The five Hammerheads who didn’t have a hit combined to pick up 11 walks and score 13 times.

Taylor Brotemarkle earned four free passes, while Nastali (3), Marzocca (2), Jada Heaton (1), and Katie Marti (1) all showed off eagle eyes.

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Hammerheads drop the … hammer

Posted in Softball, tagged , , , , on May 18, 2019| Leave a Comment »

Combining big hits, tons of walks, and aggressive base-running, the Central Whidbey Little League Majors softball squad has outscored foes 225-53 this season. (Photo by Jackie Saia)

The middle of the Island controls things.

The Central Whidbey Little League Majors softball team is dominating play early on in a four-team “Softball Classic,” and now the path to the title runs through Coupeville.

Thumping a North Whidbey team for the second-straight day, the Hammerheads improved to 13-1 on the season and 2-0 in the tourney.

This time around the opponent was the North Whidbey Dragons, who fell 15-0.

In the tourney’s other game Saturday, the North Whidbey Bandits rebounded from a loss to Central Whidbey to paste South Whidbey 20-5, eliminating the latter team.

The two Oak Harbor squads, who sit at 1-1 in the tourney, play Monday, with the survivor advancing to face the Hammerheads in the championship.

Central Whidbey needs just one win to clinch the title, while either North Whidbey team would have to win Tuesday AND Wednesday to deny Coupeville’s band of hit-happy sluggers.

Saturday, the Hammerheads, even missing key players in Savina Wells (playing in a juniors game), Katie Marti (4H show), and Teagan Calkins (wedding), were unstoppable.

“Team was very efficient on offense and defense,” said CWLL coach Fred Farris.

Central Whidbey, playing with just nine girls, finished things quickly, dropping five runs in the first, tacking on another six in the second, then closing things with a four-spot in the third frame.

Chloe Marzocca stalked the pitcher’s circle, denying North Whidbey even a whiff of success, while Madison McMillan was on a torrid roll at the plate.

She finished with a flawless 3-for-3 performance, blasting a single, double, and home run, while driving in five runs.

For her performance, McMillan received a golden game ball presented by the other team.

Mia Farris added three hits of her own, while Taylor Brotemarkle (2), Marzocca (2), and Jada Heaton (1) all chipped in with base-knocks.

Mayleen Weatherford (2), Brionna Blouin (2), Aleksia Jump (1), Allison Nastali (1), and Marzocca (1) eked out walks as Central Whidbey kept the runners churning bag to bag.

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Wins keep raining down for young sluggers

Posted in Little League, Softball, tagged , , , , on May 4, 2019| Leave a Comment »

The undefeated Central Whidbey Little League Juniors softball team swept a doubleheader Saturday, while CHS players Veronica Crownover (back, center) and Nicole Laxton (far right) worked as umps. (Suzan Georges photo)

All they do is win.

Playing in front of high school stars Nicole Laxton and Veronica Crownover, who were making successful debuts as umps Saturday, the Central Whidbey Little League Juniors softball squad swept a home doubleheader.

Even playing without staff pitching ace Savina Wells, the Wolves were too much for Anacortes, pulling out an 18-16 win in the opener, before rolling 17-7 in the nightcap.

The sweep lifts Central Whidbey to a flawless 9-0 on the season, a time when they have outscored their foes 172-58.

How the twin-bill sweep went down:

 

Game 1:

The Wolves whacked 23 hits and ended up needing every one of them in a rare nail-biter.

CWLL uncharacteristically trailed several times in the game, and were still tied 15-15 heading into the bottom of the sixth, but pulled away at the end.

Big hits from Gwen Gustafson, Maddie Georges, Jill Prince, and Sofia Peters gave the Wolves their final three runs, then the defense clamped down in the top of the seventh, and victory was achieved.

Georges led the Central Whidbey attack, ripping five singles in the opener (just the start of an amazing day at the plate for the CMS 8th grader), while Peters added a triple and three singles.

Prince notched three base-knocks, including a double, with Gustafson (2), Allie Lucero (2), Melanie Navarro (2), Vivian Farris (2), Maya Lucero (2), and Cypress Socha (1) all collecting hits as well.

Central Whidbey also played stellar defense, with Georges catching a fly on the run in center, elevating to make the catch at the last second, while Peters snared a shot back to third while sliding on her knees.

 

Game 2:

After some tenseness in the opener, the nightcap was more like a normal game for the Wolves, as they used 17 hits, five strong innings from Vivian Farris, making her first career start in the pitcher’s circle, and a monster performance by Georges.

Dominating every aspect of the game, she followed up her five-hit performance in game one with a four-hit affair in game two, which included a two-run inside-the-park home run to open the scoring.

When she wasn’t smoking hits to every field — she finished with nine base-knocks on the day — Georges provided a calming target for Farris behind the plate.

She also popped up and gunned down three would-be base-stealers, including a pair headed to third.

Central Whidbey scored in every inning, dropping two runs apiece in the first, second, and fourth innings, while blowing up the board for seven in the third.

Add a single run in the fifth, and three in the bottom of the sixth, and the mercy rule took effect when Maya Lucero lofted a monster fly which cleared the right fielder’s head before landing and bouncing around out by the warning track.

The Wolves spread out their hits, with Georges being backed by Allie Lucero (two doubles and a single) Gustafson (two singles), Peters (a home run and a single), and Prince (two singles).

Farris, Navarro, Karyme Castro, and Adrian Burrows all punched singles, as the entire lineup was on fire.

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They can’t be stopped (we think)

Posted in Little League, Softball, tagged , , , , , on April 27, 2019| Leave a Comment »

Allison Nastali was a force at the plate and in the pitcher’s circle Saturday as the Central Whidbey Little League Majors softball team won again. (Photo courtesy Beth Nastali)

They liked the score so much, they reused it.

Bashing a foe 21-5 for the second-straight game, the Central Whidbey Little League Majors softball squad ran La Conner right out of town Saturday afternoon.

With the win, the scorching-hot hitters who call themselves the Hammerheads improved to 5-0 on the season, having outscored their rivals 95-20.

They also reclaimed the title of highest-scoring softball team in Coupeville.

Sitting at an even 19 runs a game, the Hammerheads edge ahead of the CWLL Juniors, who are tossing “just” 18.7 runs a night on the scoreboard.

La Conner actually led the game through an inning and a half Saturday, as hard as that might be to believe.

The visitors pushed three runs across in the top of the first, then after Central Whidbey tied the game back up, notched two more scores in the second.

And then death and destruction came raining down, as the Hammerheads used their bats to inflict grave damage on the hapless softball.

By the time Central Whidbey was done peppering hits in the bottom of the second, it had plated 14 runners and turned a 5-3 deficit into a 17-5 lead.

Four more runs in the bottom of the third, after Allison Nastali threw a perfect inning in the top half of the frame, whiffing two La Conner hitters, ended things.

Nastali, who was making her debut in the pitcher’s circle, teamed up with Taylor Brotemarkle and Chloe Marzocca to baffle the La Conner hitters.

While the Hammerhead hurlers were zipping fastballs past their rivals, the Central Whidbey bats were booming.

Mia Farris filled up the stat sheet, collecting three hits, including a triple, while knocking in a pair of runs and scoring four times herself.

And that was just the start of the offensive bonanza, as Madison McMillan used two hits to pick up five RBI, including a walk-off three-run double which ended the game, thanks to the mercy rule.

Teagan Calkins, Brionna Blouin, Marzocca, and Jada Heaton chipped in with two hits apiece, while Nastali, Mayleen Weatherford, and Katie Marti also had base-knocks.

“Everyone contributed and Allison was awesome on the mound,” said Central coach Fred Farris.

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