Cougars Softball Sails Into Playoffs With Shutout of Calhoun

The Kennedy and Calhoun softball teams went into yesterday's game on opposite ends of the spectrum. While the Colts just looked to end their season on a high note with a win, a victory for Kennedy meant that they were in the playoffs.

The Cougars got the win that they needed, and did so in a fashion that said they couldn't wait to start the playoffs. They beat Calhoun 12-0 at Kennedy High School, with the game being called after the top of the fifth, when the Colts weren't able to bring any runs home.

Kennedy's offense showed up early in the game, scoring runs in each of the four innings they batted. In the bottom half of the first, they pounced on Calhoun's starting pitcher Rebecca Suss for seven runs.

"[Their offense] was really impressive, I mean that's the reason they were in first place and that's the reason they're going to the playoffs, because they have a packed lineup top to bottom," Colts coach Jason Boland said. "They made the most of their opportunities and their hitting shows why they're the top team in the league."

In the middle of all of the hitting was Cougars slugger Heather Hulkower, who went 3-3 at the dish with three runs batted in, including a triple and a homer.

"Hulkower has such quick hands so it's really important for her to wait and explode," Kennedy coach Katie Speiss said.  "She did that today and that's what we needed, so I'm proud of her."

Unfortunately for the Colts, they just weren't able to produce with the bats on Friday. Sam Finkel, the starting pitcher for Kennedy, was on fire, giving up just four hits while striking out five.

"It was a good way to close out the season," Finkel said.

According to Boland, the combination of a tired team and Finkel's performance did not add up very well for Calhoun.

"We just played four games in a row this week, so we're a little fatigued," Boland said. "Also, the JFK pitcher was really on target today and hit her spots, so it was kind of hard for us to catch up."

Only one player on the Colts, Gianna Saladino, seemed to be able to figure out Finkel's pitching. She went 2-2 with two singles. Saladino said that the previous game helped prepare her for Finkel.

"The pitcher [we faced] yesterday was kind of the same, and I felt really confident going up there," Saladino said.

Although happy with her pitcher's performance, Speiss knows that Finkel is looking to improve, and that can only help the team going into the playoffs.

"She still wants to keep getting better and I think that's important because we need to keep getting better to prepare for the playoffs next week," Speiss said.

Speaking of the playoffs, the Cougars won't know who they will be playing until Tuesday. But their coach is already looking ahead and thinking of what to expect from her team.

"I hope we do what we've been doing for I'd say 99 percent of our season," Speiss said of the playoffs, "which has been playing as a team, be positive, be upbeat and win the game."