Sports
Softball: Benet Takes Third In Class 4A
The Redwings take New Trier 7-4 and tie the school record for wins, while senior pitcher Allyson Staats sets a new school mark for pitching wins.
EAST PEORIA – Benet Academy’s softball team has developed a reputation this season as being a group that refuses to give up, even if it is down in a game.
It seemed only fitting that the Redwings overcame an early deficit to New Trier to capture third place in Class 4A at the East Side Centre in East Peoria Saturday.
Down 2-0 through two innings, the Redwings came through with a four-run third to pave the way for a 7-4 win, tying the school record for wins in a season (31) in the process.
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“Our attitude has always been that we don’t quit,” Benet coach Jerry Schilf said. “We fell behind there. In a third place game, all of a sudden you can convince yourself that it’s a meaningless game. The kids didn’t do that. They battled.”
Benet (31-11) and New Trier (23-13) were both coming off of tough semifinal losses Friday, but neither team seemed fazed early on Saturday. RBI singles from Leah Herlocker in the first and Mimi Morris in the second staked Brigit Ieuter (17-9) to a 2-0 lead.
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But, as has been the case the past three days, Benet’s young bottom of the lineup sparked a rally in the third. Freshman Marissa Panko led off with a single, sophomores Ali Michalik and Maeve McGuire followed with RBI singles and senior Allyson Staats provided the big blow with a two-run single. Suddenly, Benet led 4-2 and never trailed again.
“They’re very key,” Staats said of the contributions of Panko and Michalik at the bottom of the order. “The bottom of our lineup has really come through. Today, they got that rally going and it brought up the top of the lineup.”
Staats made a little history of her own, breaking the school record for pitching wins in a season by improving to 29-10. That broke a tie with Lauren Rohan for the school mark.
Staats wasn’t overpowering, allowing four runs (three earned) on six hits while walking three and striking out six, but it was enough to finish her Benet career with a win.
“Everybody knows about (Rohan),” Staats said. “I actually didn’t think about that. We were standing in line to get our medals and Julianne (Rurka) was like, ‘Hey, didn’t you break the wins record?’ I forgot about it.”
A two-run single from McGuire in the fourth, a hit that once again plated Panko and Michalik, provided some separation for Staats on the bump.
Benet loses six seniors to graduation, most notably Staats. The older sisters for McGuire (Nora) and Panko (Mikayla) will also move on, as will second baseman Shellie Schaffer. All four were four-year starters and were a part of both of the program’s 31-win seasons. The first came in 2009.
“As a team, we’re leaving an imprint on school history,” Staats said. “We’re the first team (in program history) to ever come down here. We appreciate how hard it is to make it to the state tournament. It’s just really awesome that we could do that.”
