COLOMA — The Brandywine softball team saw the curtain fall on its 2013-14 campaign as a topsy-turvy Division 3 District Tournament witnessed the Bobcats weather a familiar old foe’s furious rally attempt in one game, only to have their aspirations of a district title sank in the maelstrom of the hosting team’s all-around play.

In the first game, Brandywine took full advantage of a Bucks team that struggled in nearly every facet of the game; as the Bucks stranded nine on the base paths, committed multiple costly errors and got a surprisingly flat start out of their ace, Kaitlynn Enders, who lasted five innings before being yanked after giving up five earned runs.

For Enders, the writing may have been on the wall from her first battle at the plate, as Bobcat leadoff-hitter Makenna Hartline watched three balls go by before taking Enders yard on the 3-0 pitch.

The Bobcats built themselves a comfortable 5-0 lead before Buchanan showed any flashes of life in the game. To its credit, Brandywine held strong after seeing the Bucks score four runs in the top of the sixth. The Bobcats were even able to add an insurance run in the bottom of the sixth when Justine Sater doubled to center and drove Hartline in for her thirdrun of the game.

Kelly Harper picked up the win for the Bobcats as she pitched a complete game, allowing nine hits with four strikeouts and nine walks, while giving up just three earned runs over the course of the game.

Enders was tagged with the loss for Buchanan; as she went five innings, surrendering five runs on nine hits, striking out seven and walking only three.

The championship game pitted the Bobcats against the three-time defending district champion Coloma Comets.

Though the game started out extremely positively for the Bobcats, who scored two runs in the first inning, the contest quickly slipped away from them as Coloma put on a dominating display of softball en route to scoring 10 unanswered runs throughout the remainder of the game and cruising to the title.

With the exception of the first inning, the Comet’s ace, Emily Najacht, dealt seven different kinds of smoke from the mound; none of which a Brandywine bat seemed capable of handling. Najacht finished the contest with nine strikeouts and one walk, while only giving up one earned run on five hits.

Comet catcher Makenzie Moody hit a gargantuan, though purely cosmetic on the scoreboard, homerun to centerfield off of Bobcat relief pitcher, Morgan Crocker in the sixth-inning.

Harper was assigned the loss after giving up eight hits and three runs (though only one was earned) through a mere two innings of work.

Brandywine finishes the season with a record of 21-14 and will look to return 10 members to the team next year as they will lose only two players to graduation.

 

Division 3 District Softball

At Coloma

Championship game

Brandywine                           200     000     0 – 2 4 3

Coloma                                   130     105     x – 10 13 1

Kelly Harper (L), Morgan Crocker (3); Emily Najacht (W)

2B: Emily Najacht (C), Alyssa Dillenbeck (C)

3B: Jenna Faultersack (C)

HR: Makenzie Moody (C)

Varsity records: Coloma 31-9, Brandywine 21-14

 

 

Semifinals

Buchanan                               000     112     0 – 4 9 1

Brandywine                           104     001     x – 6 10 0

Kaitlynn Enders (L), Brittany Schmidt (3); Kelly Harper (W)

2B: Justine Sater (BW)

HR: Makenna Hartline (BW)

Varsity record: Buchanan 25-7