5A IEL SOFTBALL: Vikings have a blast
<p>The Coeur d’ Alene High School team gathers at home base after fellow teammate Abby Howard hits a home run in the fifth inning of the first game of the doubleheader against Lake City Tuesday at Coeur d'Alene High. </p>
<p>KRISTEN McPEEK/Press Breana Burke of Coeur d’Alene just makes it to second base as Hayley Loffer of Lake City dives for a catch in the second inning of the second game of a doubleheader at Coeur d’Alene High School on Tuesday.</p>
COEUR d'ALENE - Tuesday's matchup between the co-leaders in 5A Inland Empire League softball was close - for a while.
Then one swing from Coeur d'Alene High catcher Abby Howard changed everything.
Howard, a senior, broke up a scoreless game with a solo home run in the fifth inning of the first game. Her shot triggered an uprising that sparked the Vikings to 7-0 and 15-0 victories over the visiting Lake City Timberwolves at Larry Schwenke Field.
"That was the biggest hit of the day," Coeur d'Alene shortstop Kylie Rasmussen said. "That really shifted the momentum, and the spirit, and the focus."
Jane Wilkey added a two-run single later in the fifth inning for Coeur d'Alene (15-0, 8-0 5A IEL).
Junior Breana Burke threw a pair of shutouts for the Vikings, striking out six in each game. Coeur d'Alene's leadoff hitter also went 3 for 4 with a double and three RBIs in the second game vs. Lake City (11-4, 6-2).
"Burke had a great day, an absolutely great day," Coeur d'Alene coach Larry Bieber said. "She was really on, hitting her spots."
Coeur d'Alene scored four in the fifth inning and three more in the sixth to break the first game open.
In the second game, Rasmussen went 3 for 4 with a double and two RBIs as the Vikings shelled two Lake City pitchers for 19 hits, ending the game in the fifth inning on the 10-run rule.
"In that first game we battled; Michaela Flerchinger had a perfect game going into the fifth inning," Lake City coach Jesse Lenz said. "In fastpitch, it can snowball quickly on you. We'll see them many more times (starting next Tuesday in a doubleheader at Lake City)."
Bryce Catt had two hits and drove in two runs for Coeur d'Alene in the second game, and Howard, Jadyn Behm and Kylie Smith each had two hits.
"They showed me an awful lot of character, especially in that first game," Bieber said.
He said Howard's hit, on a 3-0 count, was "huge, because we just went from there. That just lit a fire under us."
After Lake City dominated Coeur d'Alene to the tune of 15 victories in 16 meetings from 2011-13, momentum has shifted to the school on the east side of U.S. 95, as the Vikings have won eight straight over the Timberwolves since the start of the 2014 season.
"Now, finally able to beat up on them, it's a good feeling," said Burke, who has been on the Viking varsity since her freshman year. "But we play them next week, so we can't look past them."
On Saturday in 5A IEL doubleheaders, Lake City plays host to Post Falls, and Coeur d'Alene is home vs. Lewiston.
FIRST GAME
Lake City 000 000 0 - 0 5 3
Coeur d'Alene 000 043 x - 7 7 1
Michaela Flerchinger, McKenzie Wilson (6) and Chloe Falciani-Marshall; Breana Burke and Abby Howard. W - Burke. L - Howard.
HITS: LC - Gay 2, J. Wilson, Falciani-Marshall, Loffer. Cd'A - Howard 2, Raynor 2, Behm, Wilkey, Montee. 2B - Gay. 3B - Loffer. HR - Howard (2).
SECOND GAME
Lake City 000 00 - 0 4 1
Coeur d'Alene 144 6x - 15 19 1
Michaela Flerchinger, McKenzie Wilson (4), Flerchinger (5) and Chloe Falciani-Marshall; Breana Burke and Abby Howard. W - Burke. L - Flerchinger.
HITS: LC - J. Wilson, Dement, Gay, Walker. Cd'A - Burke 3, Smith 2, Rasmussen 3, Howard 2, Raynor, Behm 2, Catt 2, Wilkey, Donovan, Montee, Amos. 2B - Burke, Rasmussen, Montee, Amos. 3B - Donovan.