Over the weekend on Sept. 4 & 5, the Southeast Colorado Angels traveled to Greeley to compete in the annual big school softball tournament that featured some of the best 4A and 3A schools in the state.
The Angels struggled in all three games, losing to 4A Severance Silver Knights, 22-7, on Friday. Then on Saturday they were controlled by top-ranked University in the 3A division, 11-1, and also 4A Greeley West, 12-0, on Saturday afternoon.
The tournament results left the Angels’ coaching staff a lot to consider as they now prepare for the conference part of the season.
The young Angels are still trying to figure out how they all fit together and will hopefully figure that out in the weeks to come.
SECO Angels 7, Severance 22
The Southeast Colorado Angels knew they were stepping up in competition when they traveled to Greeley’s Twin Rivers Park for a Front Range tournament featuring some of the better 3A and 4A softball programs in Colorado.
The Angels, a cooperative program featuring players from Eads, Wiley and McClave, finished the weekend with a 2-5 season record and looking to continue developing against high-level competition. Head coach Tandy Bitner also used the tournament as an opportunity to develop more depth in the circle rather than relying exclusively on senior ace Kennedy Gyurman.
Unfortunately for SECO, their tournament opener on Friday, Sept. 4 came against a powerful Severance Silver Knights squad that wasted little time taking control. Severance, a 4A program that improved to 6-4, jumped on the Angels early and eventually handed SECO a 22-7 loss.
The Silver Knights exploded in the top of the first inning, scoring eight runs before the Angels could get settled into the contest.
Katie Thomas delivered one of the big blows with a single that plated three runs, while Addelyn Sell followed with a two-run single. Kenzy Henneke drew a bases-loaded walk to force home another run, and Emery Waggener doubled home two more as Severance quickly built an 8-0 advantage.
Gyurman got the start in the circle for SECO and worked the opening inning. She surrendered three hits and eight runs while striking out two, but five walks helped Severance keep the inning alive and continually put runners in scoring position.
Taylor Reeder, a left-handed freshman, came on in relief and handled the pitching duties for the remainder of the contest.
Severance continued to apply pressure in the second, adding four more runs. Emmilia Lova singled to center to drive home two runs, while an Angels error allowed two more to score.
Trailing by a large margin, however, SECO showed some fight in the bottom of the second and put together its best offensive inning of the contest.
The Angels erupted for seven runs on three hits, taking advantage of some Severance defensive problems while also putting together several productive at-bats.
Reeder got into the action offensively with an RBI single, while Avery Chaildin grounded out to bring home another run. Laila Garcia followed with an RBI single, and Eads senior Bailey Sierra worked a bases-loaded walk to force across another run. A Severance error proved especially costly, allowing three additional Angels to score.
Suddenly, after being down 12-0, SECO had put seven runs on the board and had given itself some life.
The Angels, however, were unable to sustain that offensive momentum against the Severance bullpen.
Elizabeth Stimatze started in the circle for the Silver Knights and earned the victory. She allowed three hits and seven runs—four earned—over two innings while striking out one and walking two. Severance pitching shut down the Angels from there.
SECO managed four hits in the game, with Reeder, Emma Wollert, Garcia and Gyurman each collecting one. Reeder, Sierra, Garcia and Chaildin were each credited with an RBI.
The Silver Knights eventually put the game away with another big offensive surge in the fifth inning, scoring six runs on four hits.
Waggener singled home a run before Deja Jackson delivered the biggest swing of the game, blasting a grand slam to left field that broke the contest wide open.
Severance finished with 12 hits. Thomas led the Silver Knights by going 3-for-5, while Jackson and Waggener each drove in four runs. Sell added two hits in three at-bats.
Reeder’s extended appearance in relief was an important part of Bitner’s effort to develop additional pitching options for the Angels. She worked four innings, allowing nine hits and 14 runs, but only three of those runs were earned. She struck out two and walked two.
The large difference between total runs and earned runs also reflected another issue for the Angels, as defensive miscues helped Severance extend innings and capitalize on extra opportunities.
Despite the lopsided 22-7 final, the seven-run second inning provided a glimpse of what SECO can do offensively when the Angels put the ball in play and pressure the opposing defense. But against a quality 4A opponent such as Severance, the Angels learned quickly that walks, errors and extra outs can turn into crooked numbers in a hurry.
The Severance game was the first test of what would prove to be a difficult weekend for the still-developing Angels as they faced strong Front Range competition and some of the better pitching they have seen during the young season.
SECO Angels 1, University 11
The Southeast Colorado Angels continued their challenging trip to the Front Range on Saturday morning, Sept. 5, when they squared off against one of the best teams they will see all season at Greeley’s Twin Rivers Park.
After taking a 22-7 loss to 4A powerhouse Severance on Friday, the Angels were back on the diamond Saturday against University, the top-ranked team in Class 3A. The Bulldogs entered the contest with a 10-2 record and demonstrated why they are considered among the state’s elite, pulling away from SECO for an 11-1 victory in five innings.
The Angels, now 2-5, have spent the early portion of the season trying to develop their offensive consistency while head coach Tandy Bitner has also used the tournament setting to develop pitching depth rather than relying exclusively on senior ace Kennedy Gyurman.
Against University, however, Bitner went back to Gyurman in the circle, and the senior kept the Angels within striking distance through much of the contest before the Bulldogs finally broke things open late.
University grabbed a 2-0 advantage in the bottom of the first, taking advantage of walks to get its offense started. Kamzee Kern drew a bases-loaded walk to force home the first run.
The Bulldogs added another run in the second when Bergen Duarte singled to the left side of the infield, and University made it 4-0 in the third on a solo home run to left field from Aubrey Luera-Smith.
Duarte supplied another big blow in the fourth, launching a two-run homer to left that stretched University’s advantage to 6-0.
Despite facing an excellent University pitcher in Lily Marquez, the Angels were able to put the bat on the ball better than the final score might indicate. SECO finished with seven hits over five innings, the same number of hits University managed against Gyurman during her 4⅔ innings in the circle.
Savanna Brown and Lacie Kraft led the Angels at the plate with two hits apiece. Brown finished a perfect 2-for-2 and drove in SECO’s lone run.
The difference was that University was able to turn its opportunities into runs while also showing considerable patience at the plate. The Bulldogs drew 11 walks in the contest, continually creating traffic on the bases and putting pressure on the SECO defense.
University finally put the game away with a five-run bottom of the fifth. Marquez helped her own cause by blasting a solo home run to center field before Kenzie Wyatt followed with a two-run shot to left. Marin Taylor then singled home two more runs as the Bulldogs pushed the margin to 11-1 and brought the contest to an early conclusion.
Gyurman took the loss after working 4⅔ innings. She surrendered seven hits and seven runs while striking out three and walking four. University did additional damage after the pitching change to reach its final 11-run total.
Marquez earned the victory for University, scattering seven SECO hits over five innings while allowing just one run. She struck out three and issued only one walk, consistently forcing the Angels to put the ball in play.
Duarte led the University offense, going 2-for-2 with three RBIs, while Emma Zacheis also collected two hits. University received home runs from Luera-Smith, Duarte, Marquez and Wyatt. Zacheis was also a problem on the base paths, stealing three bases.
University played a clean game defensively as well, committing no errors.
For SECO, the 11-1 loss was another difficult matchup in a tournament intentionally loaded with some of Colorado’s strongest 3A and 4A softball programs. While the Angels’ still-developing lineup again struggled to produce runs, collecting seven hits against the state’s top-ranked 3A team provided at least one positive takeaway.
The Angels would have little time to regroup, as they were scheduled to return to action later Saturday against Greeley West to complete their tournament weekend.
SECO Angels 0, Greeley West 12
Another loss came in the Angels’ third game of a challenging tournament slate that matched SECO against some of the better 3A and 4A programs in Colorado. Throughout the weekend, the Angels struggled to get their still-developing offense going against quality pitching, and that was again the story against Greeley West (6-4).
The Spartans jumped on SECO immediately, putting eight runs on the board in the bottom of the first inning and putting the Angels in a deep hole from which they could not recover.
Greeley West’s Amaya Cron started the scoring with a solo home run to center field. Aubrey Perez followed with another big blow, belting a two-run homer to right field. Anjali Hodge added an RBI single, while Adyson Kinnison drew a bases-loaded walk to force home another run. Cron came around for a second at-bat in the inning and delivered again, driving in two more runs with a single. An SECO error accounted for another run as the Spartans built the commanding early advantage.
The Angels turned to Taylor Reeder in the circle as head coach Tandy Bitner continued to use the tournament as an opportunity to develop pitching depth.
Reeder, a left-hander, worked three innings and was charged with nine runs, seven earned, on six hits. She struck out one and walked five. The Angels’ catcher Emma Wollert came in for 2/3 inning of relief.
Greeley West added another run in the third inning before eventually finishing off the 12-0 victory.
Meanwhile, the Angels simply could not solve Cron in the circle. The Greeley West pitcher was dominant through four innings, allowing just one hit while striking out eight and walking two. Cron also helped herself considerably at the plate, going 2-for-2 with three RBIs. Jeslyn Fernandez added two hits for the Spartans, who showed patience at the plate by drawing six walks.
SECO’s lone hit came from Hailey Pearson, who finished 1-for-2.
The shutout illustrated the primary challenge the Angels faced throughout their trip to Greeley. Against a tournament field loaded with strong programs and experienced pitching, SECO had difficulty generating consistent contact and putting together productive innings.
Despite the lopsided results, the weekend gave Bitner and the Angels an opportunity to test different pitching combinations and gain valuable experience against a level of competition that should help the young lineup as the season progresses.
The Angels will travel for a double-header to Burlington on Tuesday, Sept. 8, and then host a good Forge Christian group who were defeated by Lamar in the Thunder Diamond Tournament in Lamar over the weekend. Forge Christian will be in southeastern Colorado on Saturday, September 12 amid county fair activities for the Eads players.
