Prairie Ridge meets match in supersectional loss

Prairie Ridge sophomore Tessa Rife looks on Monday in the bottom of the seventh inning of the IHSA Class 4A Barrington supersectional in Barrington. Fremd defeated Prairie Ridge, 3-1. (Justin Edmonds – jedmonds@nwherald.com )

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BARRINGTON – With two runners on base and no outs in the bottom of the seventh inning Monday, a three-run deficit standing between Prairie Ridge’s softball team and a trip to the state semifinals, coach Mike Buck did not panic.

This Wolves team was loaded with competitors who, through Prairie Ridge’s four postseason games, had found a way to make their never-die attitude produce clutch victories that earned the Wolves a berth in the IHSA Class 4A Barrington Supersectional game against Fremd.

But the Vikings were equally fierce, and sometimes all the desire in the world cannot manufacture a win.

Fremd pitcher Lena Brottman struck out the next three batters to secure a 3-1 victory against the Wolves.

Lauren Seegers and Brianna Kinowski, who was running on a last-chance single from Erin Smith, were left on base.

“We were never out of it, and that’s all you can ask for,” Buck said. “Not giving up out there, fighting the entire way, I think it speaks to the quality of kids I have in this program this year. Their mentality is some of the most competitive I’ve ever seen. These kids did a remarkable job. I can’t tell you how proud I am of them.”

The Vikings will play in the Class 4A state semifinal at 7 p.m. Friday in East Peoria against Loyola Academy.

Prairie Ridge (32-7 overall) scored first in the bottom of the first inning. Third baseman Lexi Wachman singled to shallow right field, moved to second on Anna Patras’ sacrifice bunt, to third on Erika Trojan’s sacrifice grounder and scored on Seegers’ two-out single to left.

“That was very important to score first,” Buck said. “We wanted to set the tone and the tempo for the rest of the game.

“We made a couple mental mistakes later ... and [Brottman] did what she had to do.”

Fremd took the lead, 2-1, in the top of the second. Jessica Tackett and Kelly Voigt each singled, and Tackett scored off Casey Latal’s flyout to right.

The throw from right that could have stopped the go-ahead run from scoring went wide, allowing Voigt to score.

Fremd (31-4) tacked on another run in the third, when Tackett’s two-out double drove in Kristine Werling, who had reached on an error.

Prairie Ridge pitcher Johanna Turner (31-5) turned in another solid performance in the circle, going the distance and striking out seven while not giving up any walks and scattering five hits.

But she was countered by Brottman (20-3), who remained true to her stingy form, striking out 10 and allowing three hits, including Smith’s single to deep right center with no outs in the bottom of the seventh.

Seegers had reached on an error to lead off the inning, and Smith’s single put runners at the corners with no outs.

Fremd coach Jim Nelson did not mince words with Brottman on his visit to the circle.

“I kind of got in Lena’s face and told her that she had to get ahead of the batters,” Nelson said. “... Other than that, we just kind of talked through the situation we were in.

“ ... These girls are very deserving. We thought if they did everything we asked them to do, we had the talent to go downstate. They responded and have done all we wanted and more.”