By Steve Raymond
ET Sports Report
The St. Anthony seniors will leave the softball program knowing they never lost a regional game.
The Lady Bulldogs kept that streak alive Friday afternoon with a hard-fought 6-4 victory over their rival, the Teutopolis Lady Shoes, in the championship game of the St. Anthony Class 2A Regional.
For this group, it was their fourth straight regional title.
“It never gets old,” SAHS coach Makayla Taylor admitted. “We battled through some adversity today. But at this point of the season, it’s all about survive and advance. In the postseason, a win is a win.”
St. Anthony is known for its potent offense. In Tuesday’s 17-2 rout of Sullivan in the semifinals, the Lady Bulldogs scored 11 runs in the opening inning and finished with 17 hits.
T-Town pitchers Alyssa Tipton and Olivia Hemmen made sure the SAHS bats were not as potent, and as a result, the game at Bulldog Field was close throughout – although there was a threat of a big first inning.
Addie Wernsing led off with a drive over rightfielder Kayleigh Zerrusen’s head that went for a double. After one out, Abbi Hatton and Sydney Kibler both walked to load the bases. Maddie Kibler than received a third straight walk to force in the first run of the game and Stacie Vonderheide was then hit by a pitch to make it 2-0.
The Lady Bulldogs were set up for a big inning, but Tipton retired the next two batters.
The St. Anthony Lady Bulldogs wasted no time in establishing control.
And in the postseason, that’s exactly what you want to do.
The Lady Bulldogs sent 15 batters to the plate in the very first inning. They pounded out eight hits, including four for extra bases – and one that left the park altogether.
When the third out was finally recorded, they had scored 11 runs and were on their way to a 17-2, four-inning victory over Sullivan on Tuesday in a semifinal game of the St. Anthony Class 2A Regional.
The big blow of that first-inning explosion was a grand slam off the bat of Laney Coffin. Maddie Kibler, Hailey Niebrugge and Abbi Hatton each had RBI singles and Lily Gannaway added a run-scoring double.
Nine different players collected hits in St. Anthony’s 17-hit attack. Sidney Kibler had three, while Niebrugge, Hatton, Stacie Vonderheide, Coffin, Julia Schultz and Gannaway each had two. Coffin finished with five RBI.
Sidney Kibler pitched the first two innings and got the win. Addie Wernsing pitched the final two frames.
The Lady Bulldogs, who improved to 26-3 on the season, will play for the regional championship Friday. They will face either Pana or Teutopolis at 4 p.m. The game will be played at Bulldog Field.
By Steve Raymond
ET Sports Report
The first three innings, the St. Anthony bats were held in check.
But over the final 10 innings, they pounded six home runs, banged out 31 hits and scored 22 runs.
As a result, the Lady Bulldogs posted a doubleheader sweep over the Effingham Lady Hearts and wrapped up a third straight championship in the annual City Series.
The three-game set was scheduled to begin Wednesday, but rain forced that game to be cancelled. So, a doubleheader was then set for Thursday.
Addie Wernsing’s one-out single in the bottom of the seventh inning gave St. Anthony a walk-off, 5-4 win in the opening game.
The nightcap was a slugfest. The Lady Bulldogs went deep five times and rolled to a 17-7, six-inning victory.
The St. Anthony Lady Bulldogs are the No. 1 seed in the Effingham St. Anthony Class 2A Regional, which will open play on Monday, May 13.
There are six teams in that regional, including the host Teutopolis Lady Shoes, who are the No. 8 seed. The other teams are Shelbyville, Sullivan, Cerro Gordo and Pana.
The winner of the Effingham St. Anthony Regional will advance to the Monticello Sectional, which is scheduled for May 21-24. Winners of the regionals at Normal University, St. Joseph-Ogden and Westville will also advance to the Monticello Sectional.
Here is the schedule for the St. Anthony Regional:
Monday, May 13
Game 1 – 4:30 p.m. – Shelbyville (#11) at Sullivan (#10)
Game 2 – 4:30 p.m. – Cerro Gordo (#12) at Teutopolis (#8)
Tuesday, May 14
Game 3 – 4 p.m. – St. Anthony (#1) vs. Winner Game 1
Wednesday, May 14
Game 4 – 4 p.m. – Pana (#2) vs. Winner Game 2
Friday, May 17
Game 5 – 4 p.m. – Winner Game 3 vs. Winner Game 4 (championship)
The combination of Sydney Kibler and Addie Wernsing on the mound continues to work well.
Coach Makayla Taylor has been throwing Kibler the first four innings and then Wernsing comes in for the final three. That strategy has proved to be quite successful.
That duo combined to limit Flora to just two hits Monday afternoon, helping the St. Anthony Lady Bulldogs post a 4-1 victory at home.
Kibler gave up the two hits and the run, while walking three and striking out six. Wernsing came on in the fifth and threw three hitless and scoreless innings. She walked one and fanned five.
The Lady Bulldogs scored two runs in the second inning and those proved to be enough. Sydney Kibler got a one-out single. Courtesy runner Lilly Gannaway then came all the way around to score when Maddie Kibler’s bunt was misplayed for an error. Later in the inning, Stacie Vonderheide also laid down a bunt that brought home the second run.
St. Anthony padded its lead with single tallies in the fourth and sixth. Abbi Hatton belted a solo homer to lead off the fourth and Maddie Kibler delivered an RBI single in the sixth.
The Lady Bulldogs improved to 23-2 on the season. They will now play in the annual City Series against Effingham. That three-game set will be played Wednesday, Thursday and Friday. Wednesday and Friday’s games will be played at St. Anthony, while Thursday’s game will be at the EHS diamond.
All three games will start at 4 p.m.
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