Pitching rules at Northbrook's Spartan Classic girls softball tournament
As with any softball team, strong pitching led the Northbrook 10-and-under Gold team to a title at the Northbrook Girls Softball Association's 12th Spartan Classic held June 10-13.
Gold pitchers Sadie Frease, Keegan McAnally, Rebecca Schwager and Finley Kloepfer struck out 67 batters and allowed just 6 hits over a combined 27 innings pitched. Working with catcher Lexi Steres, opponents hit just .073 against them.
When crunchtime came, though, Gold bats also came alive.
In the championship game of the premier 10U Green Division, coach Melissa Anderson's Northbrook team trailed the Lake Zurich Lightning 2-0 after 5 innings. Gold rallied with 3 runs in the sixth inning, taking the lead on right fielder Rebecca Shaw's 2-run single, to make McAnally the winning pitcher in relief of starting pitcher Frease.
The 10U Gold was among four NGSA teams out of 47 competing in the tournament to finish either first or second in their division.
Coach Chris Dahle's 10U Green team won its Gold Division. Patrick Mahoney's 12U Gold was runner-up to KR Fastpitch in the Green Division, while coach Maxine Faass' 14U squad reached the Gold bracket championship, losing to the Windy City Thunder.
All those Golds and Greens happened on three diamonds at Techny Prairie Park and Fields and four other fields throughout Northbrook. There were 112 games played on the seven fields over those four hot days.
Proceeds raised by the Spartan Classic go to support the girls softball programs of the NGSA, a 22-year-old nonprofit organization.