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Playoff-powered: Plano, East enter postseason with emphatic victories

BY Kevin Hageland, khageland@starlocalnews.com

Published: Wednesday, April 25, 2012 1:18 PM CDT

Momentum is vital entering the postseason.

It's tough to imagine going into the playoffs with much more momentum than Plano East softball (12-2 in district), which completed the final week of the regular season with an 8-7 win over Plano Senior that moved the Lady Panthers into a tie for the 8-5A lead and a 22-5 thrashing of Lewisville that clinched the district's top seed.

"We wanted to finish with that first seed," said Karen Kalhoefer, East head coach. "We worked very hard in every game to get to this point and we weren't going to let it go in that last game."

That was evident Friday as East managed 19 hits and beat Lewisville in five innings.

"Our hitters had been patient all week; they got the Lewisville pitchers to throw strikes and really attacked the strikes they were given," Kalhoefer said. "It was a nice game to end on because in addition to hitting the ball well, we played good defense and ran the bases well."

Junior Jacque Anthony and senior Holly Kern both had homers in the win with the former belting a solo shot and the latter a grand slam. Kern, who had seven RBIs, was missing only a single to complete a cycle.

"After the game even Holly was saying, 'how did I not get a single,'" Kalhoefer said.

With the win, East secured the district's top and a bi-district playoff series against Southlake Carroll.

"East is a good team," said Tim Stuewe, Carroll head coach. "They obviously won a very good district and they have a balanced team."

But the Lady Dragons, which finished fourth in 7-5A, aren't conceding anything.

"Our district is pretty strong too, for the most part, and we always try to play a very challenging non-district schedule," Stuewe said. "It's a brand new season. You can throw the records out and anything you've done in the past doesn't really matter anymore. It's going to come down to who plays the best on that day and who gets and takes advantage of the breaks the best.

"And I think we're as prepared as we can be."

The best-of-3 series begins at 7 p.m. Friday from East before shifting to Carroll at 3 p.m. Saturday. Game 3, if necessary, is scheduled for 7 p.m. Monday at Coppell.

"I think the girls are in great spirits right now," Kalhoefer said. "They are ready for the playoffs to start and have been in a great mood this week."

Lady Wildcats win city clash

Spirits are similarly high for Plano (12-2), which closed its regular season Friday with a 5-2 win over Plano West (5-9) to secure a co-district title with East.

"It was a good test for us," said Cynthia Zea, Plano head coach. "Plano West always puts a great team on field. It's a rivalry game, so that's always tough, and (West senior) Victoria Brown is a really good pitcher to have to go up against."

Ashley McDowell, Kat Batey and Gabrielle Taper each had a double in the win. All three are seniors, which makes sense given the Lady Wildcats started their nine seniors and played them for the duration of the 5-2 victory.

"It was a really good tribute," Zea said, "and great for the girls who have given so much to the program for the past four years."

As the No. 2 seed, Plano will open the playoffs against Denton Guyer. The Wildcats from 7-5A placed third in their district and feature a lefty-heavy lineup and junkball pitcher.

"Denton Guyer is very tough," Zea said, "and a lot different from what we've seen."

The best-of-3 bi-district series opens at 7:30 p.m. Friday from Guyer before moving to Plano at 2 p.m. Saturday. Game 3, if necessary, is set for 7:30 p.m. Monday at Lewisville.

The Lady Wildcats are looking to replicate, and exceed, last season's performance, which culminated in the program's first trip to the Class 5A State Tournament.

"The girls have worked so hard and been so patient to get to this point," Zea said. "They are very driven and very calm. They aren't stressed because they sort of have that been there, done that mentality and they know what they have to do to prepare, which is something you can't teach, it only comes through experience.

"Now that we're in the postseason, you can see that extra bounce in their step because they are excited to get started and achieve all the goals they've set for this last run."

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