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Section 4AAA playoffs

First round-

Blaine 7

Chisago Lakes 0

“We definitely had our chances.”

That’s Steve Fisher summing up the Wildcats 7-0 section loss to Blaine last Monday. Ironically, the same statement could probably sum up the entire 2004 season. So many times, they seemed to be one big hit away from reaching their potential.

They never got that hit against Blaine. Instead, it was an endless cycle of missed opportunities:

-The Wildcats had runners on first and second with nobody out three times in the game and failed to score.

-In the second, the ‘Cats loaded the bases with nobody out and failed to score.

-With runners on first and second in the fifth inning, Blaine got out of the jam by striking out three straight Chisago batters.

-Finally, in the seventh, again with runners on first and second, the Wildcats came up with nothing.

Those are just four examples that Fisher refers to when talking about their season ending loss.

“We just couldn’t get a big hit,” remarked Fisher, Chisago Lakes head softball coach. “We couldn’t get that hit late in the game when we had runners on. It could’ve been a 3-1, 4-2 game. We had our chances.”

Blaine got going in the first with one run, followed by two more in the fifth to grab a 3-0 lead. Unable to strike back, the wheels fell off in the sixth when Blaine scored four more, helped out by four straight Chisago errors. For the game, the ‘Cats managed just five hits.

“We just lost focus at the end. Things definitely didn’t end on a good note,” mentioned Fisher. “Nothing really changed the whole year. We were competitive against the teams we were supposed to be competitive against. We beat the teams we were supposed to beat, and we lost to the teams we were supposed to lose to. There really weren’t any surprises. We just didn’t have anyone that was real consistent and that hurt us.”

Whitney Slagerman was the pitcher of record for the Wildcats, dropping her final season record to 8-5. Meanwhile, as a team, the ‘Cats finished with an overall record of 11-9.

Blaine 7, Chisago Lakes 0

R

Chisago Lakes 000 000 0 0

Blaine 100 024 X 7

Reed 1-2

Ploog 0-4

Baumgard 1-4

Novak 0-4

R. Nelson 0-2

Walbridge 0-1

Cunningham 2-3

A. Nelson 0-2

Oehme 0-2

Swanberg 1-3

LP: Slagerman (8-5)

6 IP

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