Anna Dimling, seen here firing a ball back in from the outfield, went 3-for-4 at the plate for McDonogh.
McDonogh was determined to make it back to the B conference championship game after coming out on the losing side of it last year. On Thursday, the fourth-seeded Eagles played inspired softball and beat number one-seeded Chapelgate Christian 8-4 to reach the Conference finals.
The Yellow Jackets (15-5) had won 10 games in a row and twelve of their last thirteen coming into the game. However, yesterday they made a few uncharacteristic errors and just couldn't match the intensity of McDonogh as they fell at Kiwana Field in Ellicott City.
"We've been playing lights out for the past month," said Yellow Jackets head coach John Issac. "We just didn't match their intensity."
"All the things that we've done right this season, we didn't do today," Issac added.
Chapelgate finished the game with five errors that led to four runs for the Eagles. In a couple of innings, the Yellow Jackets put runners on base but could not capitalize by getting runs to across the plate.
In the bottom of the third, trailing 4-1, Emily Casey singled putting a runner on base with no outs. Casey moved to second on a groundout by Lauren Ahrens. Catcher Julia Groves singled to put runners on the corners with one out, giving the Yellow Jackets a chance to close the gap. But the next batter Cori Bohn, who went 2-for-4 with 3 RBI, grounded into a double play to end the inning.
A lot of Chapelgate's inability to capitalize could be credited to McDonogh's defense, as it was solid around the infield. A hard, line-drive comebacker up the middle that for sure looked like a base hit off the bat of Ahrens was snared by Eagles' pitcher Emily Trosch. Trosch, a team captain, pitched a complete game and fielded her position well.
"Emily walked the first batter of the game and never walked another," said McDonogh head coach Bridget Collins. "She also had some great defensive plays on the mound."
"We hit some bullets but they came up with them," Issac added.
McDonogh (11-4), who lost to Chapelgate by a combined score of 17-4 in two games in the regular season, were full of life. The Eagles stood on their feet when batting, yelling chants and making noise for each teammate that went to the plate. McDonogh was very intense and it spilled over onto the field.
Center fielder Anna Dimling went 3-for-4 at the plate with two singles and a double with an RBI for the Eagles. Bailey Kershner and Stacy Berg also had good days at the plate. Kershner hit a single up the middle in the fourth inning and Berg hit a deep fly ball to center field for a double and scored Kershner.
Entering the seventh, the Eagles had a five run lead and they added another in the inning to increase their lead to 8-2.
In the home half of the inning, the Yellow Jackets' last effort to keep their season alive yielded two runs as Bohn drove in Ahrens and Groves in a two-run single to cut the lead in half. But that would be all Chapelgate would get as Trosch closed out the game to send McDonogh back to the finals.
"My players were very focused from the first pitch," said McDonogh Bridget Collins. "Our goal was to get ahead early and hold the lead. We focused on fundamentals like being patient at the plate, getting the bunt down, and being smart baserunners."
The Eagles will face Notre Dame Prep, which was a 7-3 winner over Maryvale in the other semifinal game, on Sunday at 1:00 p.m. at Harford Community College.
B Conference Brackets
IAAM B Conference Semifinals
McDonogh 8, Chapelgate Christian 4
M 220 210 1 -- 8 6 4
C 100 100 2 -- 4 7 5
Trosch and Berg; Black and Groves.
2B: M--Dimling, Berg.