Kowalski, DeKalb knock out S. Elgin

There are days when you just plain get beat by a better team, and the only thing you can do is admit it and tip your hat to them.

Saturday was one of those days for the South Elgin softball team.

DeKalb freshman Katie Kowalski handcuffed the Storm all day with a variety of inside-outside pitches and pinpoint control while the Barbs’ offense executed to perfection in a 6-2 win over South Elgin in the championship game of the Class 4A South Elgin regional, DeKalb’s first regional title in softball since 2003.

And with the title, DeKalb quieted the naysayers — for this week anyway — who agreed with its No. 2 seed, although the Barbs came into the regional 27-4.

“I tried to put one there,” said DeKalb coach Jeff Davis when asked if his team had a chip on its shoulder after not being the top seed. “I don’t think (his team) bought into it though. “Then when I heard they said out here that we don’t play anybody I just said ‘Hey, we’re not 28-4 for nothing for no reason.’

The Barbs proved Saturday that regardless of their schedule, they are a formidable foe heading into next week’s Rockford Guilford sectional, where they will play the Wednesday semifinal against Hononegah, a team DeKalb beat 6-1 in the regular season. The Thursday semi pits Cary-Grove against Jacobs with the winners returning next Saturday for a trip to the June 6 NIU supersectional.

While DeKalb showed its mettle as a team Saturday, Kowalski proved she’s a pitcher beyond her years.

“She’s been phenomenal for us all year,” Davis said. “She’s not a kid that gets upset or overly excited. She’s got a good attitude and she plays like a college kid.”

South Elgin coach Jason Schaal could only credit Kowalski and the Barbs.

“We got runners on and we put pressure on her,” said Schaal of his top-seeded team that finished the season 21-15. “But DeKalb is a good softball team and Katie never lost her composure. The pressure we did put on her didn’t affect her that much.”

South Elgin did score first, as senior Katelyn Stonecipher, who went 2-for-3, doubled to lead off the home half of the first inning. Kara Rodriguez sacrificed her to third and Shannon Conway’s sacrifice fly plated the game’s first run as a steady rain began to fall that lasted for the better part of the game.

“I was really nervous when the game started,” said Kowalski, who allowed 6 hits and had 7 strikeouts and 2 walks. “I just had to keep the ball dry and my hand dry. This is really exciting for us.”

Trailing 1-0 in the top of the third, one swing of Dani Thibault’s bat gave the Barbs the lead for good. With two outs — DeKalb scored 4 of its runs with two out — leadoff hitter Sabrina Killeen singled to left field and Thibault then took an 0-1 pitch from South Elgin junior Sam Bolin (16-12) well over the center field fence to give DeKalb a 2-1 lead.

The Barbs added a run in the fourth on Vicki Van Bergen’s two-out RBI single and another in the fifth on an RBI single from Kelli Gerace.

Stonecipher singled and scored on Alyssa Buddle’s single in the bottom of the fifth to make it a 5-2 game and the Storm, who left 7 runners stranded, had runners at second and third but Kowalski got Bolin to ground out hard to short.

After DeKalb got a run on Mackenzie Johnson’s RBI single in the top of the sixth to make it 6-2, South Elgin had a rally brewing in the bottom of the inning with runners at first and third and one out but Gerace made a leaping catch of Brittany Koss’ liner and flipped to third to catch Brittany Rogalla before she could get back to the bag to end the inning.

“I’ll take that one,” Schaal said. “I thought it was going to get past Gerace and I was yelling for (Rogalla) to go.”

The loss brought a close to the sensational four-year career of Stonecipher, as well as Conway and Cara Wolf.

“There are no words that can explain what Katelyn Stonecipher has meant to this program,” Schaal said. “Our three seniors this year have been fantastic leaders. To get to the regional championship game with such a young group is fantastic and the credit goes to the seniors.”

South Elgin returns 7 starters next season, all with another year of valuable varsity experience.

“Overall the young kids did really well stepping up this year,” Stonecipher said. “I’m proud of all of them. We had a good season. We lost to a better team today. There’s not much you can do about it.”