Published: October 10, 2008 02:13 am      

Waltonville knocks off Okawville to reach softball finals

By PAUL T. WILCOXEN

paul.wilcoxen@register-news.com

COULTERVILLE — Trailing 4-3 in the top of the seventh, the Waltonville Lady Spartans' Grade School softball team scored the tying run before adding two more in the top of the ninth to prevail 6-4 over Okawville Thursday in a semifinal game at the SIJHSAA softball finals in Coulterville.

The Spartans will now face Galatia today in the finals beginning at 3 p.m.

"One true thing about it is both team were so evenly matched," said Brett Fitzjerrells, Waltonville head coach. "It could have went either way. We just got the bounces to go our way."

After the Lady Rockets added a run in the bottom of the sixth on a single from Janel Lake and an RBI base hit by Emily Norton, Waltonville quickly tied the game after Kayla Kulinski singled to lead off the seventh and scored on a base hit by the Lady Spartans' No. 9 hitter, Brooke Frisch.

"Our girls didn't give up," said Fitzjerrells. "They were down 4-3 in the seventh inning. They scored, came back, played defense and scored two runs in the top of the ninth and held them.

"They went out and played the game. They won it. We've been in a lot of close games all year long. They knew not to give up. They never gave up all year long. They came out ready to play."

In the ninth, Frisch led off by reaching on an error by the second baseman. She later scored on a two-out error by the third baseman off the bat of Maegan Eskew, who scored on an RBI single up the middle from Katlynn Bodine.