GRAND RAPIDS – The Timberwolves suffered a quick exit from the Section 7A girls softball tournament played here last Thursday, falling first to Cherry and then North Woods in the consolation round.
The Wolves prevented a rout even as they faced long odds against the Tigers in a 7-0 loss. We were playing the best of the best in our section,” said Ely Head Coach Cory Lassi. “We faced a pitcher that is very dominant and threw a perfect game against us last year.”
Ely pitcher Katrina Seliskar gave up 11 hits in the contest, but she kept them mostly scattered, which helped limit Cherry’s run totals. Yet, a run here and run there allowed the Tigers to rack up more than enough runs against Ely’s well-contained batters. Cherry’s pitcher fanned a whopping 15 Ely batters, while issuing no walks.
“We had some good at-bats, fouling some pitches off and working the count, and I was pleased with how we battled,” Lassi added. Ely hitters Charly Flom, Kate Coughlin and Raven Saino all managed to reach base for Ely.
“Defensively, I thought we played really well,” Lassi said. “We gave up 11 hits, but it didn’t seem like we were just getting shelled.”
The Wolves seemed poised for a comeback in the consolation round as they came out swinging, grabbing a 5-0 lead over North Woods early, but the Grizzlies pushed back to keep the score close. Tied at six in the sixth-inning, the Grizzlies racked up seven runs to blow the game wide open.
Down 13-6, the Wolves did their best in their final at-bat, but a four-run inning wasn’t enough to bridge the gap. “I was really proud with how the girls battled. We got to the point where we had the tying run on deck,” he said. “They didn’t give up.”
Ely batters recorded 16 hits in the game, including four hits each for Kate Coughlin and Clare Thomas, who hit a double. Rachel Coughlin also doubled on two hits. Seliskar added two hits. The team drew four walks and had three strikeouts.
On the mound, Zoe MacKenzie allowed seven hits. She had two strikeouts and allowed five walks.
“A lot of good came out of this season,” Lassi said. “I knew that we had a lot of girls gone at various times throughout the year. We played 18 games and only had our full line up for six of those games. That provided opportunities for other players to step in and get experience. That only bodes well for next year.”
The Timberwolves will have big shoes to fill in 2023, with three full-time starters graduating this week.
Kate Coughlin led the Timberwolves this season with 29 hits and 31 RBIs in 58 plate appearances. She had seven doubles, a triple and a homerun. Charly Flom and Katrina Seliskar led the team with 63 at-bats each. Flom had 23 hits, including two doubles and a triple, and scored 28 runs. Seliskar added 15 hits.
As a team, The Timberwolves had 64 stolen bases in 18 games this year, led by Clare Thomas with 14. Flom added 13. Kate Coughlin added 12. And Zoe MacKenzie had six.
Seliskar finished her senior year on the mound with an 8-3 record. She gave up 101 hits over 65 innings, struck out 43 batters, and walked 27.