PREP SOFTBALL: K-M-S uses 6-run 6th to knock off the Flying Dutchmen 11-3

MARSHALL — You can’t go for a run without shoes. Edgerton/Southwest Christian’s softball team hung shoes on the fence to represent the team’s symbol outside their dugout for good luck, but the Flying Dutchmen ended their run Thursday, falling to Kerkhoven-Murdock-Sunburg 11-3 in the Section 3A championship in Marshall.

“K-M-S is a great team, they deserve all the credit,” E/SWC coach Andrew Fleischman said. “We knocked on the door after we got a couple runs, but we made a few mistakes.

“We just made some mistakes that were uncharacteristic of us.”

It was a 5-3 K-M-S lead heading into the bottom of the sixth, but the undefeated Fighting Saints (23-0) sent 11 batters to the plate and scored six runs thanks in large part to three E/SWC miscues in the field to shut the door.

E/SWC pitcher Breana Van Dyke and K-M-S pitcher Erin Haglund were untouchable through the top half of the third, as the two gave up one hit, one walk and struck out five combined.

K-M-S opened the scoring in the bottom of the third. A one-out single from Ellen Johnson and back-to-back walks to Samantha Dunn and Haglund loaded the bases for the Fighting Saints before Courtney Olson’s sacrifice fly plated the first run of the game.

K-M-S made it 2-0 in the bottom of the fourth on a Kalli Forsell double, but E/SWC cut into the lead when Lindsey Van Dyke scored on a wild pitch in the top half of the fifth.

Two E/SWC errors put runners on second and third to start the bottom half of the fifth and K-M-S made the Flying Dutchmen pay. Lori McCain plated two on a one-out single and Haylie Helms plated another on a bunt to make it 5-1.

“My goal was to let them hit and get my throws and hopefully my team would back me up,” Breana Van Dyke said. “Five innings were good and then they got a hold of it.

“We made a few errors and they made their run.”

Breana Van Dyke cut the lead to 5-3 with a two-out single, scoring Sarah Post and Tara DeKam in the top of the sixth.

“(Haglund) knows where my weakness is, but I finally got it down,” Breana Van Dyke said. “I know she’s a good pitcher, so I knew had to be on top of my game.

“She was really confident in herself and she threw well. Our hitters needed to be more aggressive.”

The floodgates opened in the bottom half of the inning.

An error, double and walk loaded the bases with no one out to start the inning before another E/SWC error made it 6-3 and a wild pitch made it 7-3.

Brielle Hauge delivered the knockout punch, with a bases-clearing triple to make it 10-3 and McCain made it 11-3 with a single in the next at-bat.

The Flying Dutchmen went down in order in the top of the seventh and the season came to an end.

“It was a good season,” Breana Van Dyke said. “First round of the playoffs, we were down four in the last inning and we ended up here.

“There’s nothing to hang our heads about. K-M-S is a good team and they have a good lineup, so I’m proud of my team and what we accomplished.”

The Flying Dutchmen finished 19-5 overall.

“K-M-S is a great team and they put pressure on you,” Fleischman said. “We had a great year and it hurts a little now, but there’s a lot of great memories and we accomplished a lot.

“We had a fantastic year. Winning the conference championship was our first goal and getting to the section championship was our second goal. Ultimately, our goal was to go to state, but we came up a little bit short. K-M-S was better than we were today, but that is in no way shape or form a sleight to the team we have.”

R H E

E/SWC 000 012 0 — 3 4 4

K-M-S 001 136 X — 11 8 0

Daily Globe Sports Editor Chris Murphy may be reached at 376-7328.

Tags: southwest christian, sports, prep, edgerton, softball