Despite being the No. 1 seed in the Warren Sectional, Fremd was not going to just sit back and wait against perennial powerhouse Barrington, so they ran.
“We wanted to push,” Fremd’s coach Jim Weaver said of the team’s aggressiveness (including three stolen bases) that helped generate runs in their 4-1 win. “We probably did some things today against the grain that might have had fans saying, ‘What is he doing?’ But we decided to let it all hang out.”
Fremd (28-5) would jump on the scoreboard in the first inning, which would help set the tempo for the rest of the game. Fremd’s junior Allie Gaeding managed to draw a leadoff walk against senior Barrington pitcher Kiley Dolezal. Gaeding later would steal second and eventually be knocked in by first baseman Megan Horn to give the Lady Vikes an early 1-0 lead.
“We had a lot of energy and we were ready to play,” said Gaeding who swiped two bags during the game. “I think our speed forced them to play under a little more pressure.”
Gaeding’s second stolen base came after she legged out a bunt to start the bottom of the fifth. With Fremd already up 3-0, Gaeding laid down a bunt that barely left the batter’s box, but Barrington’s senior catcher Kristin Kuhn was unable to make the out at first.
Gaeding’s six-inch bunt eventually would have her standing on second, because she stole the bag moments later, sliding under Kuhn’s throw. Gaeding would score the insurance run, Fremd’s fourth tally, on Brittany Ciura’s single moments later. Ciura ended the night three for three.
Fremd “took advantage of our miscues,” Barrington’s coach Perry Peterson said of the runs manufactured through poor execution. “The second and third runs let in were due to errors, and the fourth run was a bunt where we couldn’t make the play at first base.”
“The team that played the best, won today,” Peterson went on to say. “All the credit goes to Fremd.”
Fremd built on its early 1-0 lead in the second frame by capitalizing on costly Barrington errors that had allowed two more runs in. Junior catcher Janelle Schneider drove in one of the runs and stole a base. Fremd was three of four on steal attempts.
Staked to an early three-run lead was all the run support junior Rachel Doering needed, as she and the defense were able to silence the normally potent Barrington bats. Barrington, the fourth seed in the sectional, averaged 5.5 runs a game in its previous MSL matchups and during the Class 4A regional playoffs.
“We just had to stay confident,” Doering said. “We practiced so hard, and we were ready for this.”
“(Rachel) pitched great today and that was probably the best that she has pitched all year,” Weaver said. “She made the pitches she needed to make and showed mental toughness late in the game getting out of that bases-loaded jam.”
The Fillies (27-11) had their chance to get back into the game during the top of the sixth. The rally began with a walk to Barrington’s sophomore slugger Loren Krzysko (finished year with 12 homeruns a single season school record), followed by an error on Kirsten Tinkoff’s popup. Moments later the bases were loaded and junior Jordan Wekony’s fielder’s choice drove in Barrington’s lone run.
Now leading 4-1, Doering buckled down and induced a foul out and a groundout to get out of the jam, securing Fremd’s win. Barrington, as a team, would end the night 3 of 10 (1 RBI) with runners in scoring position.
Fremd already had lost to nemesis Barrington twice this year (8-2 and 3-0), but no one was thinking about the two previous losses.
“We weren’t even focusing on those two games,” Weaver said following 4-1 win. “We focus on the playoffs, and everything we do (during the regular season) is geared towards making sure we are playing as long as possible.”
The Lady Vikes now wait for the winner of Palatine and Lake Zurich, which plays at 4:30 p.m. Thursday, June 2, as part of the Warren Sectional. The potential crosstown sectional championship will be at 11 a.m. Saturday, June 4,
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