By Steve Raymond
ET Sports Report
Errors can be killers.
The Effingham Lady Hearts committed four of them Tuesday afternoon.
They got by with the first two, but the final two accounted for three runs and that proved to be the difference.
The Freeburg Midgets were the beneficiaries of those miscues, posting a 4-2 victory in a semifinal game of the Waterloo Class 3A Sectional.
“I think we were a little nervous,” EHS coach Jerry Trigg said following the game. “Freeburg is a very good team, but we just didn’t make the plays we’re capable of. I wish we would have played a little better.”
The Midgets, who improved to 31-3 and will now face Waterloo for the sectional championship, entered the semifinal game as the heavy favorite. Especially with standout pitcher Samantha Roulanaitis the mound.
The senior entered the game with an ERA of .089, having given up just 18 earned runs in 21 starts. She was also averaging 13 strikeouts a game – nearly two per inning.
But she faced a Lady Hearts team that was not intimidated and came out swinging the bats. They ended up with five hits, including two by Alyssa Martin that sailed over the leftfield fence, and only struck out three times.
By Steve Raymond
ET Sports Report
The Effingham Lady Hearts have been talking about the regional tournament all season.
“But their mindset was good,” EHS softball coach Jerry Trigg said. “They didn’t just want to get to the regional championship. They wanted to win it.”
All that talking became reality Friday afternoon.
The Lady Hearts broke out to a quick lead, belted three home runs and rode a strong pitching performance. That combination resulted in a convincing 9-1 victory over Salem in the championship game of the Highland Class 3A Regional.
It is the third regional title in school history and first since winning back-to-back regionals in 2016 and 2017.
“We’ve been to several regional championships through the years, but always seemed to get snake bitten in one way or another,” Trigg noted. “It’s nice to get that monkey off our back. And this is the first time we ever beat a higher seed (Effingham was seeded No. 3; Salem No. 2), which is good to finally do that.
“These girls came here expecting to win today,” Trigg added. “I’m really happy for them.”
EHS wasted no time seizing control of the game.
The Effingham Lady Hearts are the No. 3 seed in the Highland Class 3A Regional, which will open play on Monday, May 20.
There are five teams in that regional. The other teams are Mattoon, Olney (Richland County), Highland and Salem.
The winner of the Highland Regional will advance to the Waterloo Sectional, which is scheduled for May 28-31. Winners of the regionals at Bethalto Civic Memorial, Carbondale and Troy Triad will also advance to the Waterloo Sectional.
Here is the schedule for the Highland Regional:
Monday, May 20
Game 1 – 4:30 p.m. – Mattoon (#9) at Olney (#8)
Tuesday, May 21
Game 2 – 4:30 p.m. – Effingham (#3) vs. Highland (#7)
Wednesday, May 22
Game 3 – 4:30 p.m. – Salem (#2) vs. Winner Game 1
Friday, May 24
Game 4 – 4:30 p.m. – Winner Game 2 vs. Winner Game 3 (championship)
Sidney Donaldson, Alyssa Martin and Natalie Armstrong each belted home runs, and Raegan Boone collected four hits and scored four times.
That offensive combination helped the Effingham Lady Hearts pull away and post a 13-6 victory Tuesday over Highland in a semifinal game of the Highland Class 3A Regional.
EHS, the No. 3 seed, fell behind 1-0 in the top of the first inning, but then turned their bats loose.
In the bottom of the first, Donaldson got things started with a two-run blast that put the Lady Hearts on top to stay.
In the second, Ryley Engel led off with a walk and Martin followed by driving a pitch over the leftfield fence. With one out, Saige Althoff walked, stole second and scored on an RBI single by Boone. She also stole second base and came around to score on an error by the Highland catcher. Jerzi Bierman then doubled and Armstrong capped the six-run frame by belting a two-run homer to extend Effingham’s lead to 8-1.
The Lady Hearts added three more runs in the third and wrapped up their scoring with a four-run fifth.
All nine batters got at least one hit in the 14-hit attack. Bierman, Donaldson, Armstrong and Martin each had two. Donaldson and Martin both had three RBI.
Althoff got the win. She went all seven innings, allowing 11 hits and six runs. She didn’t walk a batter and struck out four.
The Lady Hearts, who improved to 22-10, will now play for the regional championship. They will face either Salem or Mattoon at 4:30 p.m. Friday.
When Sidney Donaldson’s pop fly was misplayed, Raegan Boone raced home with the winning run in the bottom of the seventh inning, giving the Effingham Lady Hearts and come-from-behind 5-4 victory at home Tuesday over Mt. Vernon.
The Lady Rams had taken the lead in the top of the seventh inning when Danicah Tobin blasted a three-run homer. But the EHS squad had an answer.
With one out, Saige Althoff singled. She then stole second and came in to score when Boone got her third hit of the day, an RBI triple. One out later, Donaldson hit a pop fly that was turned into a game-ending error, giving EHS the walk-off win.
The Lady Hearts led most of the way. Natalie Armstrong belted a two-run homer in the opening inning to stake the hosts to an early 2-0 advantage. Mt. Vernon scored a run in the top of the fifth, but Effingham countered with a tally in the bottom of the frame. Boone doubled, stole third and then scored on a passed ball.
Althoff pitched all seven innings to get the win. She allowed six hits, while walking two and striking out seven.
The Lady Hearts finished their regular season with a 21-10 record. Their next game will be Tuesday, May 21, when they compete in the Highland Class 3A Regional. Effingham is the No. 3 seed and will face the host Highland team at 4:30 p.m.
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