Spartans lose offensive tilt to NRHEG 10-17
While it has been an impressive bounce-back season for the St. Clair/Loyola Spartans, the team could not recover from some fielding woes in the early innings as they lost a shootout 10-17 to the NRHEG Panthers on May 22. The game was originally scheduled for May 21, but thunderstorms and a tornado watch postponed the game; a potential relocation to the turf field at Mankato East was quickly nixed as Coaches Ashley and Tyler Sander worked late into the evening to prepare the field for a well-earned home playoff game.
The matchup between the sixth and eleventh seed of the section tournament started off fast and furious as the Panthers struck quickly, and two early bunts put some pressure on the Spartans. A hard shot to center seemed to be a routine out, but Kasprowicz couldn’t secure the ball, and the bases were now loaded; however, some stellar play from Mathiowetz, who made a leaping catch to hold the runner at third, and a smart throw to home from Lotton at shortstop got the force out.
The Spartans appeared to be able to work themselves out of an early jam, but another high shot to center field was lost in the sun as Kasprowicz and Heinbaugh couldn’t come up with the catch, and the Panthers scored two runs on the mishap. It was a tough outing for Kasprowicz as the next batter popped up, and she mishandled the catch for her third error of the ballgame–two more runs came across for NRHEG. Klaseus was able to strike out the next batter to end the side, but the damage had been done.
Thankfully, the Spartans were able to counter as they were able to get three runs in to close the gap. Lotton beat out a choppy grounder to third while Winkler drove a shot to left field, and the Panther fielder couldn’t track it in the sun. With the Spartans getting something going, Miller stepped to the plate and delivered a shot far and high into center field, which carried over the wall for a three-run home run. The Spartans went all season without the long ball, but were able to get one in the last two games of the season–better late than never.
Thankfully, the Spartans were able to counter as they were able to get three runs in to close the gap. Lotton beat out a choppy grounder to third while Winkler drove a shot to left field, and the Panther fielder couldn’t track it in the sun. With the Spartans getting something going, Miller stepped to the plate and delivered a shot far and high into center field, which carried over the wall for a three-run home run. The Spartans went all season without the long ball, but were able to get one in the last two games of the season–better late than never.
However, the Panthers’ lead widened quickly at the top of the second as they chained together a series of hits. The Spartans struggled defensively, and the lead ballooned to 10-3.
Kasprowicz was able to get some redemption as a solid knock to right field got the Spartans into scoring position, and a Lotton line driver just narrowly missed a diving Panther’s glove to score two to make the game 10-5. Despite a spectacular diving catch by Mathiowetz, the Spartans gave up three more runs to the Panthers in the top of the third, but once again, they were able to counter with two runs of their own after a well-placed liner to right field by Kruse chipped away at the 13-7 deficit.
The game slowed down considerably for both teams as the pitchers took back control of the game, and Klaseus struck out the side during the top of the fifth. The two teams would get back on track offensively as the Panthers took advantage of Heinbaugh’s wild throw to home to bring two runs across the plate; the Spartans were able to take advantage of a Panther’s bobbled catch in left as Lotton crushed a ball over the right fielder’s head as two runs score and some smart baserunning gets a third run across to bring the game to 15-10 with one inning remaining.
The seventh inning appeared to take the wind out of the Spartans’ sails as the Panthers were able to pad their lead with two more runs and make it 17-10. Nicolai got some early momentum for her team as what should’ve been a routine groundout to first resulted in an infield hit as the baseman took her foot off the bag. Klaseus would barely make it to first to avoid the double play. Still, a hard hit liner by Mathiowetz was caught by the third baseman, and a throwback to first doubled up the runner, and the ballgame was over as the Spartans and their fans were stunned at the sudden finality of their season.
The Spartans underwent a number of changes this season as first-year Head Coach Ashley Sander helped lead a struggling team to a winning record and the most wins in recent history. She was disappointed with the loss and the abrupt ending of the season but shared her thoughts about the overall improvement of the team in her first year. “This season exceeded any expectations I could have had for this team. Our focus was to have fun and bring back the fundamentals of the game, and all the extra hours the girls put in each week is what made the difference.”
Sander also congratulated Miller for the three-run home run in the first inning of the game. “Miller always had the power to get one over the fence, but it was just a matter of waiting for it to happen..all the time she spent working on her swing in practice really paid off.”
With four seniors saying goodbye to the team, Sander was incredibly grateful for the influence they had in her first year. “I cannot thank the seniors enough for accepting this new coaching staff and doing everything that was asked of them…they are going to be missed.”
Additionally, the team’s four seniors – Lydia Klaseus, Savannah Heinbaugh, Rihana Irvin, and Rayann Kruse – played pivotal roles in the team’s success for the 2024 season and will be deeply missed. The four spoke briefly about their careers with the Spartans, the impact Sander made during their senior year, and how the future of the team looks bright:
Tell me about your career with the Spartans; how have you grown over the years?
Heinbaugh: “I really grew as a player…I didn’t like playing the outfield at first, but I grew into it over my time here.
Klaseus: “This last year meant a lot to me. My pitching improved this season, and it felt good to reach 100 strikeouts.”
Kruse: “My hitting improved a lot this year. We all put in a lot of work at the plate and playing often helped us all get better.”
Irvin: “We all grew closer this year as a team; we were all focused on getting better and that would push ourselves in practice.”
Tell me Sander’s impact on you during your senior season; how did she help you grow as a player?
Heinbaugh: “We felt a lot closer with the coaches this year than in the past and she helped me reach the college level of competition.”
Klaseus: “She helped me with my pitching…I never had a coach that specialized in pitching, so this year was me at my absolute best because of Sander.”
Kruse: “She was so open-minded as a Coach, but she still wanted teamwork to drive us at both sides of the plate. All the hitting practice led to some fun games for us.”
Irvin: “They put a heavy focus on the fundamentals of the game and how to be a team; I think that helped us trust each other and help us grow into the players we were capable of being.”
The four seniors all shared similar sentiments about the future of a young yet talented Spartan team: “Work hard every day at practice and don’t give up.” Irvin specifically advised her teammates not to let one mistake define the game.
It was a difficult way for the Spartans to end the season. But the future of this team looks bright, and with Sander at the helm, the team’s trajectory can only go up.
