by Devan Matthews

Correspondent

If Tallmadge wanted to know where it stood, competing in the Champions Challenge Tournament in Loudonville was a good place to start.

The Lady Blue Devils participated in the event, which concluded April 26, playing three games. Tallmadge won two of the three games, earning a third-place finish.

They clinched third with a 1-0 win in eight innings over Colonel Crawford from Bucyrus.

The Champions Challenge Tournament is reserved only for those programs that have won a state championship in the past.

The Lady Blue Devils' first contest was April 25 against Dayton Bloom-Carroll, last year's Division III state champion.

Tallmadge trailed the Bulldogs by the score of 3-0 in the first inning and was forced to play from behind. However, the Lady Blue Devils successfully battled back and eventually won the game 4-3 by scoring a run in the bottom of the seventh inning.

Senior Nicole Schaefer had a hit and drove in two runs for Tallmadge, one of them the game-winner in the seventh frame. In addition, senior Kristen Philen collected three hits and drove in a run.

Junior Jenn Cottrell hurled a complete game on the mound to notch the victory.

"It was a good game for us," said Tallmadge head coach Ed Seeker. "Battling back after being down 3-0 early showed the character of the girls. I was very pleased with how we came from behind to get the win."

That victory put the Lady Blue Devils in the winner's bracket. The following day, April 26, Tallmadge faced Akron Manchester. The Panthers entered the contest with a record of 12-2.

This time, the Lady Blue Devils seized the early lead, 2-0. Unfortunately, though, they weren't able to hold onto it, as Manchester plated a pair of runs in the bottom of the seventh stanza to win by the score of 3-2.

Cottrell suffered the loss. At the plate, she cracked a pair of singles, as did junior Katie Swejk. In addition, sophomore Danielle Schaefer contributed a single and a run batted in.

"It was a little bit of a disappointment and it was a tough loss for us," said Seeker, "but sometimes, you need those kinds of losses to see where you stand in the overall scheme of things."

The defeat put Tallmadge into the loser's bracket, meaning that the Lady Blue Devils' final game of the tournament would be for third place. Their opponent: State power Colonel Crawford.

"They've had a lot of previous success, winning a few state titles," said Seeker. "They also have a Hall of Fame coach in Chuck Huggins, so we knew going in that it would be a difficult game."

Regardless, Seeker decided to give a few of his younger players some big-game experience. As a result, he rested many of his starters against Crawford.

Freshman Brittany Lightel was the starting pitcher for Tallmadge. She performed extremely well, striking out 11 batters en route to a 1-0 victory in eight innings.

Sophomore Fernanda Frajia drove in the only run of the ballgame in the bottom of the eighth inning.

"I was very pleased with that win," said Seeker. "We had six non-starters in the lineup and they played well. We had five hits and no errors. These are the young players who will have to step up after this year and play some valuable innings next season."

E-mail: faceto@recordpub.com

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