Energy wins Wellington tourney
Monday, July 6, 2009
The 18 and Under Emporia Energy softball team went 4-2 to take first place at a tournament in Wellington over the weekend.
The Energy started off on Saturday with two losses in pool play to the Garden City Spirit and the Sunflower Sluggers. The Energy fell 5-2 against the Spirit, despite an offensive outburst from catcher Lenae Wells, who went 2-for-2 with a home run and two runs scored.
In the Energy’s loss to the Sluggers, the game was tied 1-1 until the fourth inning when the Sluggers went ahead on two unearned runs. Elyse Hecht took the complete-game loss for Emporia, scattering just three hits in five innings, striking out three and walking none.
In an added game on Saturday, again versus the Spirit, the Energy won 4-2 behind the pitching of Brittany Shaklee and Kyleen Condon. Single-elimination play on Sunday started with the Energy winning 8-5 in a back-and-forth battle against the Twisted Sisters from Haysville. Condon got the win on the mound for Energy, striking out five of the final seven batters. Brittany Dymnioski and Lenae Wells led the offense with, both going 2-for-3. Hannah Lynch added a double as well.
In the second elimination game, the Energy beat the South Central Kansas Lunatics 11-2.
The Energy pounded out 12 hits in five innings in the win, led by Shaklee’s three singles and three runs scored. Morgan Williams punched out a single and a double and scored two runs in the contest as well. Wells and Dymnioski also had two hits apiece. Pitching in the win were Hecht and Shaklee.
In the championship game, it was a rematch with the Garden City Spirit. After giving up an unearned run in the first, the Energy manufactured a run in the third, plated by Shaklee, who avoided a tag at home plate with a swift move around the reach of the catcher’s glove to tie the score.
The Energy scored again in the fourth inning on an error in what would prove to be the winning run to go up 2-1. In the sixth and final inning, the Spirit loaded the bases with no outs to set up an incredible defensive stand by the Energy.
After a ground ball fielded and thrown home to get the force and the first out, the next batter flied out to center fielder Kandice Shreiner, who gunned a thrown home, which led to an inning-ending double play to protect the lead.
The Energy batted until time ran out to end the game and win the championship 2-1. Condon got the complete-game win. The Energy will play the next two weekends in Emporia at Trusler Sports Complex.