Sandburg keeps saving its best for last.
The No. 2 Eagles scored their runs in the top of the seventh inning Saturday to beat No. 7 Homewood-Flossmoor 2-0. Sandburg (31-3) will play Mother McAuley on Monday at the University of Illinois-Chicago supersectional.
Sandburg, the Class AA runner-up last year, scored all its runs in the sixth inning Thursday to beat Andrew 3-1 in the sectional semifinal.
“Normally we’ve been scoring our runs in the first inning,” Eagles leadoff hitter Christy Sykora said. “We have been scaring ourselves and we need to knock it off.”
Homewood-Flossmoor (27-7), riding an 18-game winning streak, left the bases loaded in the third and stranded runners at second in the fifth and sixth innings. Vikings pitcher Kristin Jenner allowed two hits through six innings.
Sandburg pitcher Brittany McIntyre gave up seven hits and fanned eight Vikings. In the Vikings’ fourth, Sandburg turned a line-drive out into an inning-ending double play.
Pitching and defense have been the Eagles’ strengths. “And we proved it today,” McIntyre said.
Sandburg’s No. 6 hitter, Nikki Netzel, led off the seventh with a single, and Meghan Gallagher sacrificed her to second. With two outs, No. 9 hitter Brittany Dixon, a lefty, executed a perfect drag bunt for a single.
On a 1-0 pitch, Sykora drove the ball to the left-center field gap, scoring Netzel and Dixon. McIntyre retired the Vikings in order in the seventh to improve her record to 13-1.
“We didn’t get the hit that counted, and they did, and that was the difference in the ballgame,” Vikings coach Dave Holst said.
Ken O’Brien.
Elk Grove 2, York 0
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Everyone should perform as well as Elk Grove ace Megan Huitink when she’s ailing.
Playing with a sore wrist and three blisters on one foot, the junior hurler struck out 18 batters and drove in the winning run to lead Elk Grove past York to capture the Addison Trail sectional title.
“That one was news to me,” Grenadiers coach Ken Grams said of Huitink’s latter ailment. “Eighteen strikeouts–and York is a heck of an offensive team. That’s remarkable. She’s remarkable.”
Avenging its postseason loss to York last year, Elk Grove (30-7) and Huitink have yet to allow a run in four playoff games. York (29-7), which outscored opponents 31-9 during its playoff run, managed just three hits against Huitink (24-4), who has fanned 53 batters in her last three appearances.
After leaving the bases loaded in the fifth, Elk Grove had runners on second and third with two outs in the sixth when Huitink helped her cause at the plate. Though Huitink (2-for-3) hit a dribbler to the first-base side of the mound, she outhustled coverage to the bag, enabling Alissa Morris to score the winning run. A throwing error on the same play brought Marissa Mortensen (2-for-3) in with an insurance run.
“I just got down there as fast as I could,” said Huitink, who has Elk Grove one win away from its first trip Downstate in 20 years. “I didn’t let [the injuries] get to me. I played on adrenaline.”
Jonathan Schoenberg.
Leyden: Kailee Roeser’s two RBIs and two runs scored helped top-ranked Oak Park (32-1) defeat New Trier 6-1. After leaving the bases loaded in the first inning, the Huskies used RBIs from Colleen McDonald and Mary Kolbusz to take a 2-0 lead in the third.
“We wasted a great opportunity in the first inning,” Oak Park coach Mel Kolbusz said. “But once we saw their pitcher the second time around, we started hitting in the middle innings.”
New Trier finished at 22-12.
Lyons Township: Mother McAuley pitcher Kim Garner got out of a no-out, bases-loaded jam in the top of the sixth inning and Debbie Peterson drove in Ricky Prieto in the bottom of the inning to lift the Mighty Macs past No. 5 Richards 1-0. The win gave Mother McAuley (30-4) its first softball sectional title.
Garner struck out six and walked none. Lindsey LaChiana struck out five, gave up just three hits and was 2-for-3 for Richards (28-6).
Morris: Lauren Von Holst went 3-for-4 with one RBI as Lincoln-Way East (19-11) downed No. 8 Lockport 6-3. The Porters finished the season at 28-10.
Barrington: Gina Marzona’s two-run single in the top of the seventh capped a five-run rally as McHenry (23-10) defeated the host Fillies 6-4.
Jenna Jacoby and Shana Matheson both walked to begin the seventh. Kendall Wapotish followed with an RBI single and Kaylee Noll tied the game 4-4 with a two-run single.
“I can’t believe I did it,” Noll said. “I’ve been in a slump and it was the time to [break out of it].”
Stephanie Massheimer had six strikeouts in the complete-game win that finished Barrington’s season at 33-3.
DeKalb: Freeport scored the deciding run on a wild pitch with the bases loaded and two outs in the top of the eighth inning to edge Machesney Park Harlem 2-1. Elizabeth Sands earned her 18th win for the Lady Pretzels (29-8).
Mundelein: Pinch-hitter Carrie Barton delivered an RBI single in the bottom of the fifth to give Fremd (27-10) a 1-0 victory over Stevenson (29-6). Donna Werling scored the winning run after reaching on a walk and stealing second. Losing pitcher Elissa Wisniewski finishes her career with a 99-18 record after posting a 27-5 mark this year.
Rosary: Cheryl Kogut had an RBI single and scored a run to lift Glenbard South (26-8) over Wheaton Warrenville South 2-0. Winning pitcher Ashley Condon scattered five hits and got out of a bases-loaded jam in the third inning. Katie Howard gave up four hits and struck out seven to take the loss for the Tigers (18-17).