Sycamore surprises top-seed Kaneland
An impressive season under first-year coach Brian Willis came to a disappointing end for the Kaneland softball team Saturday in the Class 3A Sycamore regional championship game.
The third-seeded Spartans scored the first six runs of the game and held on for a 6-3 win over the No. 1 Knights, a team that beat Sycamore twice during Western Sun play including once by the 10-run rule.
Sycamore (20-15) advances to the Class 3A DeKalb sectional against St. Viator on Wednesday while the Knights finish their season at 20-11.
"We came into this game confident, not overconfident," Willis said. "We figured if we played our 'A' game we could win this game. We maybe played a 'C' game."
The trouble started in the second inning. Delani Vest (13-7), who held the Spartans to 1 run in 22 innings in the first two games but was under the weather Saturday, allowed a pair of singles and later walked the No. 9 hitter. Spartans leadoff hitter Anna Buzzard followed with the big hit, a 2-run single that made it 3-0.
"For us to put a big three spot up and get those runs was huge," Sycamore coach Jill Carpenter said. "We got a lot of big hits from a lot of different people. We saw her (Vest) 22 total innings in two games. You better have an idea of what is going to happen."
The Knights couldn't come up with a foul fly in that inning, then twice dropped foul pops in the fourth inning that gave Sycamore batters new life. The Spartans capitalized with two more runs in the fourth to go ahead 5-0.
"I think we played a little uptight at the start of the game," Willis said. "I know they wanted it bad. Maybe it (nerves) had a little to do with it.
"There were a few extra walks, we gave them a few extra outs and they got some runs on the board. The team that made the least amount of mistakes won. They deserved to win."
After Sycamore pushed its lead to 6-0 in the fifth, Kaneland started to chip away. Katie Dudzinski's deep double to right set up Kristen Stralka's RBI single. Vest ripped another double that scored Samantha Hansen after the Spartans made a throwing error on the play.
The Knights pulled even closer in the sixth, making it 6-3 after leadoff singles by Andrea Dimmig-Potts and Brittany Davis. Davis eventually scored on an error, but Sycamore starter Abby Foulk (11-9) got out of that inning, then set the Knights down in order in the seventh.
Foulk, a freshman who didn't pitch in Kaneland's 10-run win earlier this year, allowed 7 hits, 3 runs and 0 walks in 7 innings, striking out eight.
"You can't get too cocky," Foulk said. "I'm not saying they were cocky. I feel we came more ready to play. We had nothing to lose, we had everything to gain."
Dimmig-Potts and Davis led the Knights with 2 hits each. Shortstop Allyson O'Herron ended her freshman season making a diving stop and then throwing the runner out at first from deep in the hole.
"She's made a lot of plays like that this year," Willis said. "She's got a lot of good things ahead of her.
"I thought the season went well. To win 20 games with a very young team, I think the future is bright."
Willis is going to miss his three seniors, Stralka, Davis and center fielder Jordan Hester.
"They meant a lot to our team, leadership wise, one of the best offensive players in the conference, one of the best defensive players," Willis said. "They will be missed. Someone else will have to step in and fill their shoes and they aren't going to be easy shoes to fill."