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Independence, MO —
Eureka takes an impressive 22-1 record into this afternoon’s 2 p.m. Class 4 state semifinal game against Truman High School.
However, coach Dan Davison’s Wildcats aren’t just taking on the 28-3 Patriots.
Slugging third baseman Tori Zorich said Eureka will be facing “The Avengers.”
“We lost three games this season,” said Zorich, who leads Truman with three homers and is tied with teammate Brooke VunCannon with a team-high 26 RBIs. “We lost to Lee’s Summit West, Blue Springs and Blue Springs South.
“And we came back and beat each one of those teams, including South (8-0) in the quarterfinal game to get us to state.
“After we beat everyone who beat us, we jokingly started calling ourselves ‘The Avengers’ after the superhero movie. It’s kind of fun, and takes some of the pressure off the final four. We can go to Springfield, call ourselves ‘The Avengers’ and just go out and play our game.”
The Wildcats won’t have to worry about Iron Man, the Hulk or Black Widow, but they better be prepared for Paige Parker, VunCannon, Zorich and the Patriots as they make their second trip to state in the past three years.
“Our last practice before we left Independence was really good,” said second-year Truman coach Amy Temples, the longtime assistant to former head coach Steve Broughton – who, ironically, is now her assistant coach.
“We concentrated on offense, because we didn’t want to take all that gear to Springfield. When we get to Springfield, we’ll have a defensive-oriented practice and then we’ll play Friday.
“The girls are excited and so am I. If we play our game – solid pitching and defense, and timely hitting – I think we can have some success at state.
“We’re coming off that big win over Blue Springs South, a team that beat us (3-1) in the final game of the regular season. In the playoffs, our bats have come to life and we always get great pitching. It’s an old cliché, but at state, the team that gets the best pitching and makes the fewest errors usually wins.”
The game will likely be a low-scoring affair as Parker (24-3, 0.45 ERA, 356 strikeouts) will be on the mound for the Patriots. The Wildcats are expected to throw Maddie Krumrey, who threw a one-hit shutout in a 9-0 quarterfinal win over Northwest-Cedar Hill.
This is the second year in a row the Wildcats have reached the final four.
“I don’t know a lot about Eureka,” Temples admitted, “but I do know they have Krumrey, and she doesn’t get a lot of strikeouts, but she has a great record and is coming into the finals off a shutout win just like Paige.
“We don’t have any common opponents, but any team that makes it to state is a great team. It should be an exciting semifinal game.”
Eureka takes an impressive 22-1 record into this afternoon’s 2 p.m. Class 4 state semifinal game against Truman High School.
However, coach Dan Davison’s Wildcats aren’t just taking on the 28-3 Patriots.
Slugging third baseman Tori Zorich said Eureka will be facing “The Avengers.”
“We lost three games this season,” said Zorich, who leads Truman with three homers and is tied with teammate Brooke VunCannon with a team-high 26 RBIs. “We lost to Lee’s Summit West, Blue Springs and Blue Springs South.
“And we came back and beat each one of those teams, including South (8-0) in the quarterfinal game to get us to state.
“After we beat everyone who beat us, we jokingly started calling ourselves ‘The Avengers’ after the superhero movie. It’s kind of fun, and takes some of the pressure off the final four. We can go to Springfield, call ourselves ‘The Avengers’ and just go out and play our game.”
The Wildcats won’t have to worry about Iron Man, the Hulk or Black Widow, but they better be prepared for Paige Parker, VunCannon, Zorich and the Patriots as they make their second trip to state in the past three years.
“Our last practice before we left Independence was really good,” said second-year Truman coach Amy Temples, the longtime assistant to former head coach Steve Broughton – who, ironically, is now her assistant coach.
“We concentrated on offense, because we didn’t want to take all that gear to Springfield. When we get to Springfield, we’ll have a defensive-oriented practice and then we’ll play Friday.
“The girls are excited and so am I. If we play our game – solid pitching and defense, and timely hitting – I think we can have some success at state.
“We’re coming off that big win over Blue Springs South, a team that beat us (3-1) in the final game of the regular season. In the playoffs, our bats have come to life and we always get great pitching. It’s an old cliché, but at state, the team that gets the best pitching and makes the fewest errors usually wins.”
The game will likely be a low-scoring affair as Parker (24-3, 0.45 ERA, 356 strikeouts) will be on the mound for the Patriots. The Wildcats are expected to throw Maddie Krumrey, who threw a one-hit shutout in a 9-0 quarterfinal win over Northwest-Cedar Hill.
This is the second year in a row the Wildcats have reached the final four.
“I don’t know a lot about Eureka,” Temples admitted, “but I do know they have Krumrey, and she doesn’t get a lot of strikeouts, but she has a great record and is coming into the finals off a shutout win just like Paige.
“We don’t have any common opponents, but any team that makes it to state is a great team. It should be an exciting semifinal game.”
