The Emporia Energy U-12 softball team went 8-2 this weekend on its way to a runner-up finish in the Class C Gold State Tournament in Emporia.
After losing 6-5 to the Salt City Crush in its opener on Friday, the Energy began its march back to the championship on Saturday morning.
The team picked up its first of four wins on the day by defeating the Topeka Sun Devils by a score of 4-3. Emporia’s next three wins on Saturday came against the Osawatomie All-, 16-0, Augusta Thunder, 10-9, and the Topeka Flyers, 4-2.
On Sunday, the team picked up four more wins before playing in the championship game. The Energy’s wins Sunday included a 6-2 victory over Team Xtreme, a 4-0 win versus the Thunderstyx, another win against the Salina Sun Devils by a 5-1 score, and to move on to the title game, Emporia defeated the Diamond Divas, 14-4.
The Energy’s marathon weekend came to a close late Sunday afternoon when it fell 16-1 to the Pratt Bat Busters in the championship.
Friday’s game against the Crush began with what seemed to be a sure victory until the seventh and final inning. Emporia took a 5-0 lead into the seventh but allowed six Salt City runs in the top of the seventh.
Emily Giffin pitched six innings and started the seventh, but after allowing three hits and two runs, Amanda Crone came on in relief. The Crush would not be denied and scored four more to send Emporia to the losers bracket.
Paige Turney and Crone were both 2-for-3, with Turney belting two doubles.
The Energy opened up Saturday with the Sun Devils and got the early lead. Ashley Jackson scored once in the first inning. Katie Weiser scored one more in the third. Jackson and Alix Boulanger each added one more in the fifth inning.
Three Sun Devil runs scored in the sixth inning, but the Energy defense — led by shortstop Kate Decker — and relief efforts of Giffin shut them down, as Emporia took the 4-3 win.
In Game Three of the tournament, Giffin pitched a perfect game, facing and retiring the minimum nine batters through three innings. Every Energy batter scored in the game.
Game Four was a tougher contest. Emporia struck early, scoring seven runs in the first inning, but the Thunder answered with five of its own.
The Energy later scored one of its own in the fifth that proved to be just enough in the 10-9 win. Crone was the starting pitcher with Giffin coming in during the bottom of the third inning.
Jackson, Turney, and Giffin each scored two runs while Weiser, Crone, Decker, and Taryn McCoy each scored one.
The final game on Saturday against the Flyers was a back-and-forth battle. The Flyers struck first with one run in the first inning. Emporia came right back with Jackson scoring on a single by Turney. The Flyers scored one more in the third, but again the Energy answered as Jackson scored on a double by Crone. Emporia then added two more in the fourth inning as Allie Belford and Brooke Perry scored.
The Energy defense held from there, as Emporia took a 4-2 victory. Giffin pitched the complete game.
After a long day Saturday, the Energy came out strong on Sunday. Emporia got behind early, allowing two X-treme runs to score in the second inning, but in the third, Emporia struck with four runs of its own.
The team added two more in the fourth inning to take the 6-2 win. Jackson and Turney each went 2-for-2. Crone pitched the complete game.
In Game Seven of the tournament, Emporia faced the Thunderstyx. Emporia’s defense was effective behind the shutout from Giffin. Perry, running for the catcher Turney, scored one of the Emporia runs and Decker added another, while Crone crossed the plate twice in the 4-0 win.
Emporia caught fire again early in Game Eight against the Sun Devils. Jackson and the courtesy runner, Boulanger, each scored a run in the top of the first. Salina countered with one of its own, but that would be its only run of the contest as the Energy defense held strong. Jackson scored one more in the third inning and Perry and Boulanger each added to the total in the fourth as the Energy got its seventh win in a row. Crone got the win and Giffin came in for the save.
Game Nine was against a familiar foe: the Winfield Diamond Divas. Emporia faced the Divas three times in Winfield to begin the year.
The Energy got its bats going early and scored four runs in the first inning. The Divas countered with four of their own in the second inning.
Then, Emporia added eight more runs in the third and two more in the fourth inning while at the same time holding the Divas defensively. Jackson, Weiser, Giffin, and Belford each went 2-for-3, and Crone went a perfect 3-for-3.
Giffin pitched the full four innings and got the win in Emporia’s 14-4 victory.
Although re-energized at the beginning of the day, the combination of heat and nine other games took it out of Emporia in the championship game.
The Energy couldn’t stop the superior hitting Bat Busters. Jackson scored the lone run for the Energy. Crone started in the pitching circle. Boulanger came on in relief in the third inning, and Giffin closed the game out.
Turney caught every pitch in all 10 games and batted .565 on the weekend.
Emporia finished the 2008 campaign with a 31-16 record. The team won the Derby Invitational and was runner-up in the Winfield Tournament, Regionals and State.
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