Stopped just short of state: Rosebud-Lott edged 3-2 by Elysian Fields in 2A-III softball final
by Marcus Hood | Sports Writer

May 29, 2009
ATHENS - The run was unearned. But the victory was well-earned.

Elysian Fields pitcher Blair Hickey drove in the go-ahead run with a seventh-inning triple to the center-field wall and the Lady Jackets denied Rosebud-Lott a trip to the Class 2A state softball tournament with a 3-2 win in the Region III final Thursday night.

“That killed us,” Rosebud-Lott coach Keele Wells said. “I mean, that’s not the only thing that killed us. Everyone contributed to this loss. We didn’t get the hits; they did. They deserved it.”

The Lady Cougars, who finished their season with a 21-7 record and advanced farther than any other team in school history, were outhit 7-5 but kept the game tied most of the way by taking advantage of five Elysian Fields errors.

But on the seventh-inning shot that proved to be the game-winner, it was the Lady Jackets (33-9) who got the benefit of the error.

With one out in the inning, Danie’l Goss hit a ground ball back to Rosebud-Lott pitcher Victoria Conners. The ball deflected off Conners to third baseman Kaitlyn Meyer, who couldn’t control it as Goss reached on the error.

That brought up Hickey, who drilled the shot to center. The ball had enough air under it that it looked as though Paige Bartek was going to be able to reel it in. When she missed the ball by mere inches, it reached the wall, Goss reached home and Hickey easily made third.

“She hustled her butt off,” Wells said of Bartek’s attempt. “We tell them all the time, ‘Hustle your butt to the ball and if you don’t reach it, hopefully someone will be behind you.’”

But by then it was too late.

Still, in a game that had been back and forth to that point, no one, especially Elysian Fields coach Shane Smelley, felt it was even close to being over because the Lady Cougars had the final at-bat.

“It was a back and forth and we knew they hit the ball really well. They have all year,” he said. “I was afraid it was going to be the last person with the bat in their hand will win it.”

Bartek was first up in Rosebud-Lott’s seventh and started things off with a hit to left, bringing up Taylor Bartek.

Wells had avoided using the sacrifice bunt much of the season and hadn’t used it at all Thursday night. But it was in the plans here, until she talked to Taylor Bartek, who admitted she probably wasn’t going to be able to put the bunt down because of nerves.

“I told her, ‘Then you have to promise me you’ll get a hit,’” Wells said. “She came through earlier but this time she didn’t, so what can you do?”

Instead, Bartek popped out in foul territory, then Bethani Lee followed with a strikeout. But it still wasn’t over because that brought up Rosebud-Lott’s hottest hitter, Skylar Savage.

“I had read in the paper where she doesn’t like to bunt,” Smelley said of Wells. “But still in that situation, we were still looking for it. Especially since it was the bottom of the lineup. Not that the bottom of their lineup can’t hit, they had been hitting us all day. But you move her to second and you get (Savage) up there, and a hit wins it and she had been hitting the ball hard against us.”

Savage went to the plate 1-for-3 with a triple and a run.

“I told her there’s nobody better we could have up there,” Wells said.

Smelley was on the same page as he went to the circle and discussed the option of walking Savage.

“But I decided if you walk her, you put the runner on second and a base hit scores her anway,” he said. “So I told them, ‘Let’s just go after her and see if we can get her to pop out.”

They got her instead to ground into a fielder’s choice, hitting the ball to second and forcing Paige Bartek.

“The girls know I tell it like it is, and I don’t sugar coat it for them,” Wells said. “We didn’t help ourselves at the plate today. We struck out and popped out too many times.”

Smelley agreed that missed opportunities by the Lady Cougars helped his team survive and advance to its third state tournament.

“We were able to overcome our mistakes and survive,” he said. “That’s a great (Rosebud-Lott) ballclub right there and you hate to see a good ballclub lose, but at this point everyone is good. They’ll be back here next year.”

But for the Lady Cougars, who have no seniors, the goal is getting beyond that.

Said Wells: “I told them to start preparing for next year. ‘Be proud of what you’ve accomplished. You got farther than you did last year, but next year you have to get farther than you did this year.’ I have six juniors who have one more shot at the state tournament and that’s our ultimate goal."

mhood@temple-telegram.com

WAY TO GO LADY JACKETS SEE YA IN AUSTIN

How Bout Them LADY JACKETS.

sounds like coach wells should have not let her girl talk her out of bunting. how do you let a kid tell you i can't bunt because i'm nervous? tell her to bunt the ball, geez!!

LNJ Article

Elysian Fields girls advance to STATE

By JON DUSTIN BROOKS, Cox East Texas

Friday, May 29, 2009

ATHENS — It came down to Elysian Fields' premiere pitcher and Rosebud-Lott's premiere hitter.

And as it does more often than not, the pitching came out on top as Elysian Fields advanced to the UIL State Softball Tournament with a 3-2 win over Rosebud-Lott.


"The plan was to not have to pitch to (Rosebud's) leadoff batter again," said Elysian Fields pitcher Blair Hickey. "But we did it."

And in the process, Elysian Fields punched its third trip to the Class 2A state softball tournament since 2005.

Hickey forced Rosebud-Lott leadoff hitter Skylar Savage into a soft force out to Danie'l Goss at second base, who fell on the bag with her glove, putting out Paige Bartek to seal the win.

Hickey had earlier tripled home Goss in the top half of the seventh to give Elysian Fields (33-9) a one-run lead, setting herself up for her 31st win in the circle this season.

"I was just thinking I have to hit a line drive somewhere," said Hickey, who had seven strikeouts and no walks in the complete game. "I haven't been hitting the all that well the past couple of games, so I just wanted a line drive. If they caught it, they caught it but it had to be a line drive."

As it turned out, Hickey's shot to the right-center gap scooted just to the left of a very shallow-playing Bartek in center and bounced all the way to the fence, easily scoring Goss from first. Goss had singled earlier.

"As soon as I saw it off the bat, I was just running has hard as I could," said Goss. ''I kind of knew it was going to be down so I was headed for home."

That run set up the antics in the bottom of the seventh, which got interesting after Bartek led off with a single through the left side.

"After (Bartek) singled to start the seventh, I got a little nervous but Blair worked back," said Elysian Fields head coach Shane Smelley. "We were able to get her (Savage). It was just one of those deals. We told them to get on the ground and get dirty and just keep (the ball) in front and Danie'l did and she was able to make the play."

Savage put the Lady Cougars (21-7) on the board in the third by ripping an inside-the-park home run to the right field fence, tying the game at 1-1.

Elysian Fields had assumed the lead in the second when Cheryl Boyett grounded a two-out single through the right side to score Ashley Quintana for the game's opening run.

The Lady Jackets later took a 2-1 lead in the fifth when Lacy Liles singled home Jordan Simmons, but Rosebud-Lott answered in its half of the inning after Bartek led off with a single and later scored on an error.

"We were able to answer all game," Smelley said. "It was a game of inches, like they say, and tonight some of the inches went our way. They made a couple of mistakes and we were able to capitalize and we made a few mistakes ourselves but we were able to overcome them."

And because of that, Elysian Fields now has a familiar trip to make.

The Lady Jackets won their only state championship in 2005, also qualifying for the title game in 2006.

Notes

Simmons led Elysian Fields by going 2-for-3 with a run scored ... Liles, Goss, Hickey, Ashley Quintana, Savannah Quintana and Boyett had EF's other hits ... Victoria Conners took the complete-game loss for Rosebud-Lott, striking out four ... Bartek finished 2-for-3 to pace the Lady Cougars.

Hammer, you aint kidding....In that situation you have to advance the runner and she couldnt bunt because of nerves...No doubt she was nervous but if your the coach you tell her to bunt, period. I would think they know how to bunt, but we will never know.....but one thing you dont do is tell the paper what he did...lol...keep it between you and the player.