Local girls finish fourth at state tournament

Photos by john larson

A CASCADE PLAYER SLIDES SAFELY INTO HOME WHILE FME PITCHER EMMA FROEMBLING COVERS THE PLATE.

The members of the 9/10-year-old all star softball team from Fife/Milton/Edgewood Little League gave it all they had at the state tournament last week, finishing in fourth place. The team won three games and lost two in the double-elimination tournament, held at Mill Creek Sports Park in Mill Creek.

The team consisted of Alexys Jaskari, Maggie Crist, Nicole Richardson, Emma Froembling, Rachel Lewis, Daisy Garcia, Teagan Downs, Alyssa Moreno, Nicole Burns, Kaitlynn Gain, Kaylin Fietz and Robyn Fietz.

FME lost to Gig Harbor 13-6 on July 18.

The team rebounded the following day, when they defeated South Highline National.

Nicole Burns was the starting pitcher for FME. The other team’s starting pitcher had problems with her control early on, throwing many wild pitches that allowed base runners to advance. FME led 4-0 after two innings.

In the second inning a runner on first base stole second. The throw to second went into the outfield. The runner tried to advance to third, but the throw made it to third baseman Garcia in time to tag her out. Burns struck out the next two batters.

Froembling took over pitching duties in the third inning. Highline managed to score one run in the third.

Both Kaylin Fietz and Richardson stole home on wild pitches. Play was halted briefly when a swarm of bees descended on the field and players on both teams were ordered to their dugouts. A few minutes later play resumed, then was stopped again when Highline’s manager made a complaint to the umpires regarding whether a bat used by a FME player was eligible.

After four innings FME led 7-1.

Gain was first up to bat for FME in the fifth. She hit a double. Garcia was up next and nailed a line drive that got past the left fielder for an inside the park homerun. Richardson was walked, then proceeded to steal second, third and home plate. Jaskari accomplished the same feat that made it 11-1.

The game was stopped due to the 10-run rule, which states that a team leading by 10 or more runs after four innings is the winner.

On June 20 FME defeated West Plains 7-5.

The following day they blasted Mill Creek 22-7, in another game halted due to the 10-run rule. Gain, who hit two home runs in the tournament, got one against Mill Creek on an inside-the-park grand slam.

FME faced Cascade on July 22. Cascade scored three runs in the first inning and four in the second.

In the bottom of the second, Moreno was up to bat first. She hit a fly ball that was caught for the first out.

Jaskari got to first base after she hit a ball that should have been caught by the second baseman, but it fell out of her glove. Burns went up to bat and struck out. Jaskari stole second on a wild pitch, then stole third on another. She attempted to steal home on another wild pitch but was struck out.

Cascade’s bats were hot in the third inning, when she added four runs. In the bottom of the third FME had one batter walked. Two struck out and another flied out to end the inning.

Cascade scored once in the top of the fourth to make it 12-1.

The pressure was on for FME in the bottom of the fourth, as they needed to score at least two runs to avoid the 10-run rule. Three batters came up to the plate and all were struck out to end the game.

Afterwards head coach Jim Froembling and assistant coach Dave Richardson addressed the players and their parents. Froembling called them a special group of players and fans. “I hope you all remember the summer of 2010,” he remarked.

Froembling noted the team’s resiliency in winning the District 10 tournament in Federal Way in June. They had to beat Chinook twice to win the title. The second game took place on two days due to a rain delay. Several players suffered injuries and both coaches had to leave town on business trips during the time the team was preparing for the state tournament.

“They absolutely played beyond my expectations,” Froembling remarked.

“I tip my hat to Cascade,” he said. “Every girl they had up to bat got big hits.”

Garcia said competing at the state tournament was exciting. In her four years of playing softball, this was her first experience with artificial turf. “It makes the ball bounce higher,” she noted.

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