MADISON − Perhaps the softball gods decided to smile down a few times this postseason on Kaukauna and its journey back to the top of championship mountain.
Some good defense didn’t hurt either.
The Ghosts rode that defense and also made the most of a rare opportunity against a top pitcher in their 1-0 victory over Kenosha Bradford in the WIAA Division 1 state softball championship game June 14 at Goodman Diamond.
It is the fourth title for the Ghosts in the past five years, their sixth overall and was also their 135th victory in the last 136 games.
“It hasn’t quite settled in yet,” Kaukauna senior pitcher Karly Meredith said. “It’s an amazing feeling. I wouldn’t want to go out any other way. It’s incredible.”
Meredith got the win and also started a fabulous double play off a line drive in the seventh inning that helped preserve the victory. She also scored the game’s lone run.
“I’m super proud of them,” Meredith said of the defense. “All I had to do was put the ball over the plate and they did the rest. Last year we made those errors and this year we really focused on cleaning up the defense. Defense wins games and that’s all we had to do.”
Boyle gets clutch RBI double in battle of top teams
The second-seeded Ghosts were in a close, intense battle with top-seeded Bradford from the start. Hits were at a premium and mistakes magnified. It was a true staredown of top teams. The only question was which team would blink first.
Kaukauna got the lone run in the game in the fifth with one out against Bradford ace Brooklynn Danielson. Meredith reached base on a hit-by-pitch, stole second and then scored on sophomore leftfielder Lily Boyle’s RBI double.
“She had the big hit up in Green Bay in the sectional game as well,” Kaukauna coach Tim Roehrig said. “She struggled a little in the last game and we were working with some things on her and she came through.
“I kept telling them, ‘She is going to give us a shot, she’s going to give us a shot.’ And when we get that shot we have to take advantage of it. And she did. (Boyle) came up big, clutched up and got it done.”
Said Boyle: “I know that there was a lot of talk of Karly getting on second and when she got there, it was really motivation for me. I was trusting my skills at that point and putting it all out there.”
Bradford misses on several scoring opportunities
While the Ghosts defense was superb, Bradford (29-2) did itself no favors, squandering prime scoring opportunities in the first, fifth and seventh innings.
The Red Devils (29-2) had a leadoff double in the first inning by Aubrey Strelow, which was followed by a single from Angela Parker. A fielder’s choice by Lillyana Rodriguez led to a throw-out at home and Kaukauna catcher Taylor Federwitz then nailed pinch runner Robin Loewen trying to steal third for two quick outs. Meredith then got a groundout to end the inning.
Trailing 1-0, Bradford again had an opportunity with runners on second and first and one out in the fifth inning. Strelow lined a shot that was caught by shortstop Raivyn Rabideau, who then threw to third base to double off Bradford courtesy runner Rihanna Barker.
Bradford had one final chance in the seventh when the Red Devils’ Kyli Lanhardt stroked a single up the middle on an off-speed pitch from Meredith to set up the possible tying run. Pinch runner Jasmin Grenados advanced to second on an errant pickoff attempt to put the tying run in scoring position, but Meredith showed off impressive reflexes in nabbing a line shot from Madi Strelow for the first out before throwing to second to double off Grenados.
“I just kept saying give us the best version of you for 12 more outs, for nine more outs, for six more outs, for three more outs,” Roehrig said. “And they gave it to us. And that ‘Miyagi-Do’ stuff that Karly did on the mound for the first and second out, I don’t know what that was.”
Meredith got a groundout to second base to end the game and spark the Kaukauna victory celebration.
“If you looked back at our sectional game against Preble, our defense was fantastic there too,” Roehrig said. “And we hang our hats on the fact that we’re going to play hard and you’re going to have to earn it. And we’re never satisfied with one play, and I think you saw that tonight. We made one play and then on to the next one. That’s what we pride ourselves on.”
Senior first baseman Jozy Ebben said the team’s defense rallies around Meredith.
“Karly has so much pressure on her and to be able to help her and have her be confident and have our defense be so strong, we work on it all the time,” Ebben said. “And to have it all come together and to be clean and always pay off, it’s so rewarding.”
Danielson was brilliant in the loss, finishing with 18 strikeouts and allowing just one hit − the Boyle RBI double. Meredith’s stats were solid − four strikeouts and five hits allowed in seven innings.
“She’s really good,” Meredith said of Danielson. “We have nothing against her. She’s amazing out there and she pitched an amazing game. But ultimately, I don’t have to strike everyone out. I got the defense behind me. I don’t have to go off my pitches always, my best stuff. I mean, I can try my best and if I know I can put it on that plate and they hit it, I know my defense has my back.”
Said Danielson: “It’s tough. I did everything I could on my end and I think we did well at the plate as well but nothing could string together to work for us. It’s kind of frustrating, but I think we did everything that we could and Karly’s a great pitcher, so kudos to her.”
It was the seventh state appearance overall for Kaukauna and fifth in a row. The Ghosts also won state titles in 2010 and 2017 before winning four of the last five seasons.
Roehrig said that the journey to this year’s D1 state title began after last season’s D1 state semifinal loss to Milton.
“We ended last year and the next day we were already back to work,” he said. “For a lot of these kids, it’s a full year of wanting to do what we just did. It’s been a grind and I haven’t been feeling my best with some health issues and with that the kids kind of propped me up at times. I can’t say enough about my assistant coaches and how hard they work.”
This article originally appeared on Appleton Post-Crescent: ‘It’s an amazing feeling’: Kaukauna wins Division 1 state softball championship
Reporting by Ricardo Arguello, Appleton Post-Crescent / Appleton Post-Crescent
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
