The St. Anthony Lady Bulldogs are proving they can win in a variety of ways.

In the sectional semifinal, it took a 7^th-inning homer to squeak out an 11-10 victory in a slugfest that featured 25 hits, including five home runs.

The sectional championship game was the direct opposite. Dominant pitching. Just six total hits between the two teams. And only one run.

But it was the Lady Bulldogs who pushed that run across the plate, and as a result, they are one victory away from a third trip to the state tournament in four years.

Addie Wernsing’s sacrifice fly in the third inning proved to be the game-winner. It wasn’t much offense, but it was enough, as Sydney Kibler and Wernsing combined to throw a three-hitter, helping St. Anthony post a slim 1-0 victory over Normal U-High Saturday in the final game of the Monticello Class 2A Sectional.

In that decisive third inning, Stacie Vonderheide led off with a base hit for the Lady Bulldogs. Laney Coffin reached on an error and Julia Schultz was hit by a pitch to load the bases with no outs. One out later, Wernsing lifted a fly ball to left field and Vonderheide raced home to put SAHS on top.

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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.

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Addie Wernsing’s two-out solo home run proved to be the game-winner Tuesday afternoon.

Wernsing drove a 3-1 pitch over the leftfield fence, giving the St. Anthony Lady Bulldogs a slim one-run lead.

She then took the mound and retired three straight batters, including the last one by a strikeout, sealing the victory, a back-and-forth 11-10 decision over St. Joseph-Ogden in a semifinal game of the Monticello Class 2A Sectional.

St. Anthony will now play for the sectional championship at 5 p.m. Friday. They will face either Marshall or Normal University.

The Lady Bulldogs looked to be in control early, pushing five runs across the plate in the second inning. Stacie Vonderheide started things off with a double and went to third on a base hit by Laney Coffin. Julia Schultz drove in the first run with a single and Wernsing added a two-run single. Then with two outs, a ground ball off the bat of Abbi Hatton was misplayed for an error, allowing two more runners to cross the plate.

But the Lady Spartans came back. They scored one in the third and then tallied six times in the fourth to take a 7-5 lead.

SAHS played long ball to regain the lead in the fifth. Sydney Kibler, Vonderheide and Coffin all went deep to put the Lady Bulldogs back on top, 8-7. Maddie Kibler delivered a two-run double in the sixth to make it 10-7, but SJO rallied for three in the bottom of the sixth to tie the game and set the stage for Wernsing’s heroics.

Sydney Kibler pitched the first 3.1 innings and Wernsing pitched the rest of the way. Both girls allowed five runs.

The Lady Bulldogs improved to 28-3 on the season.

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.