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Princeton ‘fights’ in 9 inning-loss to Pontiac in 2A regional finals · Illinois Valley - Shaw Local

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  Speaker 1: Princeton fights and nine inning loss to Pontiac in two
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  A regional finals. Written by Kevin Hieronymus, this article is
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  being read by an automated voice brought to you by Everlett.
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  Not all endings are happy ones. The Princeton Tigers' softball
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  team saw its season end over nine highly intense innings Friday,
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  falling to Pontiac five to three in the Class Too
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  A Lexington Regional championship game. Pontiac catcher Faith Campbell stroked
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  a two run single in the top of the ninth
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  inning what proved to be the game winning hit and
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  send the Indians eighteen twelve on to Wednesday's sectional championship
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  against defending state champion and number two rank Beacher thirty
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  two zero. Our fight was there. We woke up ready
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  to fight today. Sometimes you get the short end of
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  the stick, and that's life. Princeton senior Keeley Lawson said,
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  I'm proud of how we went out today. People stepped
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  up in big time situations that don't normally do so
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  I'm proud of our fight today. For Lawson, it was
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  an especially a memorable season, regardless of Friday's outcome. Before
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  I started the season it's my last one. I decided
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  to step away from softball. I told myself just go
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  out there and just have fun, she said. Princeton coach
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  Jessica Strausch praised her team for fighting to the end.
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  I won't say I love losses very often, but this
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  was a good loss, she said. From when they got
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  off the bus to that very last out, they definitely fought.
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  The seniors definitely made a mark for us. They did
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  a great job. It was a great effort all the
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  way through. Our bench was very strong, they were motivated.
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  They were great energizers for everyone on the field and
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  gave a drive for our defense to keep going. I'm
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  very proud of them. The season nearly came to an
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  end for Princeton in the seventh inning, with two out
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  and Sylvie Rutledge on third. Caroline Cutzer bounced back to
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  pitcher Court Krause, who rushed her throw over the head
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  of first baseman Izzy Hens. Rutledge waltzed home to tie
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  the game, and Kotzer raced to third, sliding head first,
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  where she was stranded. Princeton pitcher Reese Revillio was a
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  pitch away from escaping. The ninth inning, after two Pontiac
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  hitters reached on errors. Pontiac kept its faith in Campbell,
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  the most unlikely of hitting heroes, batting No. Nine in
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  the Indians lineup, who delivered in the clutch with her
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  two run single on a two to two count to
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  put the Indians up five to three. I've been in
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  a slump for a very long time, and I finally
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  got that hit, Campbell said. I thought, I'm just gonna
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  go hit the ball for my team and myself. Pontiac
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  struck first on Krowse's RBI hit in the first inning.
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  Kira Morris started a Tigris's rally in the third with
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  a hit off the outstretched glove of second baseman Peyton Rodgers.
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  Kwetzer slapped a hit just over the second second base bag,
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  with courtesy runner Taylor Compton in for Morris, beating the
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  throw home to even the score. It continued to play
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  out back and forth. India Mattingly ripped a double over
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  Kutzer and left field, scoring Krauza to put the Indians
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  up to to one. In the top of the fourth.
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  Ava Ortel stole the run back for Princeton in the
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  home half. She singled and came around to score from
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  second when a wild pitched skipped off the short backstop
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  down the first baseline to tie it back at two
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  to two. Krauzer put the Indians up three to two
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  with an RBI double to center. Kutzer made her second
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  defensive gym of the game when she gunned out Krauss
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  at the plate on a fly out to left to
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  end the inning. If I could give anyone player of
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  the game, it would be Caroline and Reese, Strauch said,
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  I mean Reese pitching and hitting all of her spots
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  in Caroline making amazing plays. So Strauch, who came to
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  Princeton from LP as an assistant coach, said she couldn't
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  have asked for a better first year as a high
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  school head coach. It was definitely an honor to be
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  their coach my first I got blessed with a great
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  group of girls and a great group of parents. She said.
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  They really took me in. They taught me a lot
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  about Princeton and they were so open to everything I
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  was bringing to the table to them. Addie Perry, who doubled,
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  and or Till each went two for four, with Cuser
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  going two for five. Revillio scattered ten hits. Three of
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  the five runs she surrendered were earned. She had no strikeouts. Kraws,
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  Mattingly and Bevan Brummel each had two hits for the Indians. Pontiac,
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  which won its fifth straight regional title, will face Beacher
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  at four thirty pm Wednesday in the sectional semifinals at Pontiac.
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  Beacher beat host Mantino fourteen six Friday to claim the
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  Mantino Regional