Lady Eagles softball meets goals, takes 3rd in Class 1

By Kyle Troutman [email protected]

A 3-6 start to the season was no setback for the relatively young Purdy softball team, as the Lady Eagles turned their results around to wind up taking third place in Class 1 with a 6-1 win over Plato to cap an 18-9 campaign.

Purdy softball coach Lori Videmschek said the Eagles’ return to the Final Four and third-place finish at state was a product of a young team figuring things out as the season progressed, then playing some of its best softball when it mattered most.

“They did better than I thought we would do,” Videmschek said. “I thought we would have a chance, but I didn’t know if we could get past Lockwood. That was going to be a real key test for us.”

Purdy’s season did not begin with the type of record that would suggest a state-trophy finish. Videmschek said the Lady Eagles opened the year at 3-6, but much of that came against a difficult early schedule.

“I think the only Class 1 schools that we played the first 10 games were Sweet Springs and Lockwood,” she said. “Everybody else was teams like Diamond, which we beat, Ash Grove, Mount Vernon and Springfield Catholic. We started off pretty rough.”

Videmschek said the Lady Eagles never splintered through that stretch, instead staying together long enough to discover what kind of team they could become.

“The kids held things together,” she said. “They started taking things out and they just continued to work hard and we did what we needed to do to win.”

After the slow start, Purdy rattled off 9 wins in its next 10 games.

“I think we finally figured it out what it’s going to take to get better,” Videmschek said. “We started working a little different in our preparation and at practice. I think a little bit of it was these kids had to get out of their comfort zone, to understand what it takes to get out of their comfort zone and work a little harder to win.”

Videmschek pointed to a loss at Crane as a turning point.

“We went down to Crane, and we played probably our worst ball game we played all year and got beat,” she said. “I think that was a turning point for us because we didn’t play well. We had a lot of attitude. We were tired from playing 10 games in seven days, but we figured out that this is what we got to do to get better. That was a turning point for us.”

From there, Purdy began to play more efficiently offensively and more confidently in key situations.

“Gabriela Groomer pitched it well all year,” Videmschek said. “Defensively, we did what we needed to do to win games. Offensively, we had some kids change some things around and do a little bit more bunting and we started getting some key hits with key runners on situational hitting — getting a runner at first, moving her to second on a bunt and then taking a base hit and being able to score.

“We started doing those things. We started manufacturing runs, and that was a big thing for us.”

That approach became especially important in Purdy’s 3-1 state quarterfinal win over Lockwood, the victory Videmschek repeatedly pointed to as one of the defining moments of the season.

“I think now the Lockwood game was a big one,” Videmschek said. “Going into that, we knew what their pitcher Kallie Griffin could do, and we knew how athletic that team was.”

Videmschek said the Eagles entered the game knowing they likely would not generate many clean hits and would need to create offense in other ways.

“We had a game plan of what we wanted to do, and that was bunt the ball and make them make the plays,” she said. “Because I knew hitting wasn’t going to come up. We weren’t going to get a lot of hits off her. I thought if we could put the ball in play, it would make them make the errors, and that’s what we did.”

Purdy’s execution in that game matched the plan almost exactly, Videmschek said, with the Eagles putting the ball in play, bunting effectively and defending at a high level behind pitcher Groomer.

“Defensively we played very well against them,” Videmschek said. “G pitched well, but when they did get runners on, we had answers for them defensively.”

Videmschek said the Lady Eagles also played with a freedom and looseness that allowed them to enjoy the moment rather than tighten up under pressure.

“They played and they had a good time,” she said. “We had a lot of fun playing that game. Kids have to play loose. They have to play loose and enjoy it, and it seems like when they do that, things start playing a lot better and things turn your way.”

The win over Lockwood sent Purdy to the Final Four, a stage Videmschek said is special for any program, particularly one with a relatively young roster.

“Whenever you get to the Final Four, that’s an awesome feeling,” Videmschek said. “Very few kids get that opportunity to play in a final four.”

Purdy opened state play against Kingsville and suffered a 1-0 extra-inning loss, a game Videmschek said had some missed opportunities.

“We had options, three or four innings with bases loaded nobody out,” she said. “We just couldn’t put the bunt down like we needed to. We’d been doing that all year and we just struggled with it a little bit in that game. I think a little bit is nerves, because we’re pretty young. I think they were a little tight that first game and nervous because a lot of these kids had never been to a final four before. This was a new level they had ever been to.

“I think if we could have played a little looser at the plate, I think we could have done some things and scored some runs. But we had our opportunities. It was there. We just couldn’t get the ball in play when we needed to at that time.”

Kingsville scored the winning run in extra innings by stealing home, a play Videmschek said she saw coming but could not stop in time.

“I hollered out after the first pitch,” she said. “I said, ‘You better be ready. She’ll steal home. You gotta keep an eye on her.’ You just got to look at her. You gotta look her back. It was just one of those moments, and it happened, and they scored, and they beat us.”

Videmschek’s message to her team afterward was simple — the semifinal was over, and there was still hardware to play for.

“I told the kids, ‘Hey, there’s only two teams that get to make their season and win on the very last game,’” she said. “‘We can’t do anything about the Kingsville game. I know it hurts, but we’ve got to move on and get ready and try to win third place.’”

The Lady Eagles responded in the third-place game against Plato, turning in one of their cleanest performances of the postseason to close the year with a state trophy.

“I said, ‘Just go out there and just play hard, play for your school, play for each other,’” Videmschek said. “They played very loose. We bunted the ball. We hit the ball. We ran. We did some things very well against them, and they had fun and we won.”

That result won Purdy third place in Class 1, an accomplishment Videmschek said should not be diminished by the disappointment of coming one win short of the championship game.

“Third place is nothing to hold your head low about,” Videmschek said. “That was just a great opportunity for us.”

Looking back, Videmschek said one of the most satisfying parts of the season was watching a group that started 3-6 and endured injuries, lineup changes and a difficult schedule grow into a team capable of winning a district title, beating Lockwood in the quarterfinals and finishing on the podium at state.

“This was probably one of the most enjoyable years that I’ve had coaching a team,” Videmschek said. “And it’s strictly because they had fun with one another.”

“There wasn’t any drama, and the kids just had fun,” she said. “They came to practice with a good attitude. And they worked hard and it was just a really close-knit group and it was fun to coach them this year.”

Videmschek said that perspective makes the season even more impressive considering where it began.

“If you would have told me after our jamboree and after first 10 ball games that we’d win our district and win our quarterfinal game, I would have bet a hundred bucks,” Videmschek said. “It was rough. I’m not gonna lie. It was tough.”

“But the kids did an outstanding job,” she said. “Super proud of them.”