Waubonsie puts Bartlett’s clinching party on hold
Waubonsie Valley freshman pitcher Shannon Hohman picked up the win against Bartlett Monday.
Credit Warriors’ right fielder Mel Koulos with the save.
Koulos made a pair of inning-ending catches to prevent Bartlett from scoring as the Warriors’ 3-0 victory sent the host Hawks to their first Upstate Eight Conference Valley Division loss of the season. It also snapped No. 2 Bartlett’s winning streak at 12 as No. 13 Waubonsie Valley became the first Illinois team to beat Bartlett since the Hawks lost 1-0 to top-ranked Glenbard North on March 29.
“I knew if the ball came to me, I’d have to make the catch,” Koulos said. “I’ve prided myself on my offense, but the last few weeks my defense has come along.”
Bartlett (25-4, 15-1) also missed out on a chance to clinch the league title outright. The Hawks still hold a 2-game lead with 3 to play, including Tuesday’s rematch with Waubonsie in Aurora. Bartlett also plays Neuqua Valley and Lake Park this week before the Hawks, Waubonsie Valley, Elgin and St. Charles North all represent the Upstate Eight at this weekend’s Stone City Jamboree in Minooka.
Bartlett will need to get the bats going a little more than it did against the Warriors (22-6, 13-3). Bartlett managed just 4 hits off Hohman (17-4) and just 1 in the final three innings.
When Bartlett did have a chance to score, the Hawks could not manage to drive the runs in.
Trailing 2-0, Bartlett’s Holly Pagan reached third with two outs. Amanda Montbriand smacked a ball to right field, which looked as if it would fall in. Instead, a sprinting Koulos snagged the ball and ended the inning protecting Waubonsie Valley’s 2-0 lead.
This season is Koulos’ second in right field, after she answered a call Warriors’ coach Aly Kelley put out for an outfielder last year. Both parties have prospered.
“(Last season) we were looking for an outfielder and she stepped in that spot,” Kelley said. “She’s worked hard and gotten better at reading the ball.”
In the bottom of the fourth, Bartlett had the bases loaded and trailed 3-0, with Dana Paul looking to drive in some runs. Her hard-hit shot to right field was again snagged by Koulos to end the inning. Bartlett would have just one baserunner in the rest of the game.
“They defended well,” Hawks’ coach Jim Wolfsmith said of Waubonsie Valley. “(Koulos) made a couple nice catches with runners on. We left too many runners on base. We did not hit the ball well.”
Waubonsie also struggled to get a ton of offense going against Bartlett senior Tori Burke (14-4). But when the Warriors hit, they hit big.
Amanda Lack opened the game with a gap-shot double and promptly advanced to third on Koulos’ sacrifice bunt. After an Amanda Minahan strikeout, Katie Benson crushed a home run on an 0-2 pitch.
Minahan added a little insurance when she was able to score off on Bartlett’s only error of the game after singling to open the fourth inning. Burke allowed just 1 hit in the final three innings.