Greenfield Softball Team's Season Ends in Sectional

For the first three innings, it appeared the Greenfield softball team’s string of luck against Muskego in the postseason was going to continue.

Even when the Hustlin’ Hawks trailed, 4-1, with one out in the seventh inning, they loaded the bases off Muskego ace Ashley Gnacinski and looked as if they had a little magic left.

But Gnacinski got senior slugger Andrea Solberg, who homered earlier, to softly line out in to the second baseman and struck out freshman Lexus Kirkpatrick for the third time to seal host Muskego’s 4-1 WIAA sectional final win Tuesday afternoon.

It was the Muskego beat Greenfield in the postseason since 2003.

“It was the perfect situation with our two and three (hitters in the lineup) up,” Greenfield coach Jack Miller said. “It just didn’t work out for us.”

Kirkpatrick retired the first nine batters she faced before running into trouble in the fourth. A leadoff error by the second baseman followed by a strikeout brought up Muskego’s dangerous middle of the lineup, and it delivered.

Mackenzie Wager ripped an RBI single to left field followed by a double to left-center by Gnacinski, whose courtesy runner latter scored on a wild pitch. A single two batters later brought home the Warriors’ fourth run.

“We haven’t been consistent defensively,” Miller said. “That fourth inning was really a microcosm of that.  That error really turned the inning around.”

Greenfield quickly took a 1-0 lead when Solberg, the second batter of the game, ripped a booming home run to left field through a stiff wind that was blowing in from right.

But the Hawks managed only four more hits and struck out nine times against Gnacinski, who at one point retired 10 straight batters. Greenfield did, however, have opportunities to score.

In the second inning, the Hawks left the bases loaded after three straight batters reached with one out. And in the seventh, a one-out double by Alison Schell was followed by a pair of Muskego errors, but Greenfield could not capitalize.

Second-seeded Muskego (19-9) will play in the sectional final at Kenosha Bradford at 4:30 p.m. Friday. The third-seeded Hawks finished 20-7, their six consecutive 20-win season.

“It’s really a benchmark for a team,” Miller said of 20 wins. “It shows that even in what was supposedly supposed to be an off year for us, the girls progressed and did a nice job. We just didn’t play consistent defense to be a top echelon team.”