Chester softball sweeps doubleheader

Posted April 16, 2016 11:00 pm

By Pete Spitler Staff Writer

It's never too early for a statement win.

Chester won a pitching duel in the first game, and held on to win the second as the Lady Yellow Jackets improved to 11-0 with a doubleheader sweep of Freeburg, 4-1 and 7-6, on Saturday.

Chester's Logan Colvis allowed one unearned run in the opener, holding an impressive Freeburg team to five hits.

The Midgets had entered the day 13-2 on the season and had been ranked in St. Louis High School Sports' Small Schools poll before dropping out earlier in the week.

"I think this is a very big boost for our team," said Chester coach Tracy Colvis. "We just played a very good big-school team in Freeburg. They are (Class) 3A and in the papers I've looked at, they are supposed to be the team to beat."

Chester faced Freeburg sophomore standout Miranda Schulte in the opener and scored two runs in the first and again in the third for a commanding 4-0 lead. Schulte finished with four runs (three earned) allowed on four hits with four walks and eight strikeouts in the loss.

The Midgets scored their lone run in the top of the seventh.

Kaitlyn Dillow went 2-for-3 with three RBIs for the Lady Yellow Jackets, while the team's lone senior - Jenna Wahl - drove in the other run.

Miah Mitchell also went 1-for-3 with two stolen bases and two runs scored for Chester.

In the nightcap, Chester trailed Freeburg 3-2 heading into the bottom of the fourth. Carlee Weir tied the game for the Lady Yellow Jackets with a solo home run off Midgets pitcher Josie Ledbetter.

It was Weir's first career homer and her teammates all signed the ball after the game as a keepsake for the freshman.

"Carlee hit the ball out for us and Shea pitched six innings of great ball," Colvis said. "We had Logan come out and finish it out for us, but (Petrowske) should be very confident and proud of how she performed."

Chester got the go-ahead run in the sixth thanks to Alyssa Keith, who finished 2-for-3 with three RBIs, as part of a four-run inning. The Lady Yellow Jackets would need every one of those runs as Freeburg rallied with three runs in the top of the seventh.

"Tracy told me before I got up there, 'AK and Dillow, we need you to come through here,'" Keith said of her at-bat. "So, whenever I got up there, I was being aggressive, thinking I needed to help my team out and came through."

Petrowske got the win for Chester, allowing five runs (four earned) on five hits with four walks and a strikeout. Colvis came on in the seventh and earned the save.

"Our pitching the second game, I was very proud of Shea," Colvis said. "She's a freshman and doesn't have a lot of experience at the high school level.

"I never tell them we're ever going to call them freshmen because we are a team, but my freshmen really came through in the second game."

Keith was asked her perspective on what it feels like to be 11-0.

"That feels amazing for us," Keith said. "All of us girls before this game were 'Oh, (Freeburg's) going to be good.'

"Well, we just beat one of the best teams we've ever played. (Freeburg) is great, which makes us even better."

The Lady Yellow Jackets have a busy schedule this week, including matchups against Vienna (Monday), New Athens (Wednesday), Waterloo (Thursday), Johnston City (Friday) and the Sparta Invitational Tournament on Saturday.

"I couldn't be prouder to be this team's coach," Colvis said. "They absolutely wowed me (Saturday). I'm very proud of them."

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