It's a three-peat plus one for the Northwestern High School softball team as the Tigers swept Bloomer in a doubleheader Thursday evening, winning 2-1 and 9-1.
With the win, the Tigers (16-1 overall, 12-1 in the Heart O' North Conference) are guaranteed at least a share of the conference title. If the Tigers win Tuesday at Barron, they'll claim the title outright.
"I'm proud of these girls," NHS coach Rees Flint said. "They are one of the most coachable teams I've every had."
This is the fourth consecutive year the Tigers have won the HON title, and Flint said senior leadership has been a key to the Tigers success this year.
The four seniors on the team, Shelly Schneider, Erin Malinoski, Larissa Flint and Kristina Korhonen, have routinely stepped up this season when the team needed them.
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"This year's seniors have been as good as any I've had," Coach Flint said. "They are great leaders on and off the field for our young team."
The seniors showed their importance to the team once again in the doubleheader against Bloomer.
In the first game, Flint was the winning pitcher in seven innings, striking out eight and walking one while giving up four hits.
Bloomer tied the game, 1-1, in the top of the first, but freshman Anna Morgan got a hit to score the winning run in the bottom of the sixth. Flint and Lindsay Garay also added singles in the game.
Flint said he thought the girls played a little tight in the first game, perhaps because they were nervous about the HON title. In the second game, however, they loosened up.
The Tigers scored a run in the first and began to pull away in the third inning, with RBI hits from Flint and Korhonen. Northwestern put the game away in the fifth inning, adding four more run, with Korhonen and Flint getting singles for the Tigers.
Although offense was certainly important in the Tigers' 9-1 win, Flint thought there was also some outstanding defensive play. He said Schneider, behind the plate, and Marissa Pooler both made a number of critical plays.
Garay got the win for Northwestern, striking out seven and walking one while giving up just three hits in seven innings.
