By David Paulsen
SPORTS CORRESPONDENT
The first time Wilmot and Union Grove met this season, the Bronco girls pulled out a thrilling 3-1 win over the Panthers.
This time, without the services of ace pitcher Alice Fitzpatrick, Wilmot scored seven times in the first inning and never looked back on their way to an 11-1 win over the Broncos.
Bronco head coach Ryan Boylen was not happy with his team’s performance.
“Obviously it hurts not having Alice on the mound and at the plate,” he said. “However, we did not show up to play today. This had better be a wake-up call for our girls or we will find new girls who want to work to get the job done.”
Wilmot pounded out 14 hits off two Union Grove pitchers, while Wilmot’s Kristen Wood held the Broncos to just five hits.
The Broncos also committed three errors in the game.
Sarah Petrovic pitched just one inning, giving up seven runs (five earned) on six hits, a walk and a strike out.
Emily DeCheck pitched the final five innings, forfeiting four runs on eight hits and three walks.
DeCheck knocked in the sole run of the game for Union Grove with a single in the fifth.
With the loss, the Broncos drop to 8-2 overall and 5-2 in the SLC. They trail first-place Westosha Central by two games.
After two closely fought games, the Bronco girls got a bit of a breather in an 11-4 win over Elkhorn Monday. The game was played at Elkhorn due to the Bronco field being wet, yet Union Grove was the home team.
Union Grove’s bats were hot early on in this game, as the Broncos put up two runs in the first, five in the second and three in the third to take a 10-1 lead after three.
“After learning late we would be playing without Alice Fitzpatrick and playing a home game on the road, our girls could have come out sluggish,” head coach Ryan Boylen said. “Instead, I thought they came out of the gates well.”
The Elks scored three times in the top of the sixth to make it 10-4, but the Bronco girls added a run in their half of the inning to finish off the scoring.
Union Grove pounded out 14 hits in this game. Alex Kies had three hits, including a homer, and two RBIs.
Alecia Faber, Sarah Petrovic and Katrina O’Keefe each had two hits.
Emily DeCheck had three RBIs with a double and a sacrifice. Amber Johnson added two RBIs.
Petrovic pitched the first four innings, giving up one run on four hits. She did not walk a batter and struck out four. Emily DeCheck pitched the final three innings, giving up three runs (two earned) on five hits and two walks. She struck out two.
A 4-3 win at Wateford April 27 came in spite of the Broncos being outhit 13-6 in this game.
In addition, ace pitcher Alice Fitzpatrick was forced to leave the game in the top of the fifth as a precaution due to a possible concussion.
“Alice was rolling along nicely after Waterford scratched out a run in the first, when she was hit in the head by a pitch,” Boylen said, adding that it was the fourth time in the game that a ball had been thrown at Fitzpatrick’s head.
The hit batter loaded the bases for Union Grove. Johnson followed with a walk, forcing in a run, and then Cassidy Kortendick hit a shot to right center plating two more runs.
That gave the Broncos a 4-1 lead and they held for the win, giving up two runs in the sixth.
Petrovic replaced Fitzgerald on the mound and scattered nine hits over three innings. She did not walk a batter and struck out two.
On April 25, the Bronco girls hosted Westosha Central and were handed a 2-1 loss by the Falcons.
“Both teams are exceptional teams and even though Westosha isn’t currently I the top 10 in the rankings they should be and will be as one of the few remaining unbeaten teams in Division 1, “Boylen said. “They will always hit the ball, but tonight they put it all together and executed better than we did. They got their bunts down, they made plays defensively, and we just did not.”
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