Cassopolis swept on senior night
Published 10:00 am Thursday, May 23, 2019
CASSOPOLIS — It was not the ending Cassopolis coach Demi Schrader envisioned for her seniors Tuesday.
The Rangers were swept by visiting Decatur in Southwest 10 Conference action that saw the Raiders win both games in the seventh inning.
Decatur scored three times in the top half of the seventh to win 7-4 in the opener.
The Raiders scored four times in the seventh of the nightcap to win 5-1.
The losses dropped the Rangers’ record to 15-11.
Honored between games were seniors Kaitlyn and Kiersten Hartsell, Maile Barber, Madison Suseland, Lynnzee Armstrong and Olivia Purlee, as well as exchange students Nomin Battur and Trine Jensen.
“This senior class is very special to me,” Schrader said. “I have coached these girls since they were in eighth grade, and am so proud of how much they have grown. These seniors are the heart and soul of the volleyball and softball teams. They have truly helped to build our program through hard work and dedication.”
Cassopolis had to quickly shake off the losses and focused on their regular season finale against Michigan Lutheran Wednesday before turning their focus to the Division 3 districts at Decatur.
The Rangers drew Lawrence in the opening game on Tuesday at Decatur.
The game is scheduled to begin at 4:30 p.m. The winner advances to the semifinals at Decatur June 1 against Eau Claire.
The host Raiders will face Gobles in the other semifinal June 1.
Schrader and her team will be working on fundamentals, both in the field and at the plate in order to prepare for the districts.
“To win the district championship, we are going to have to fine-tune our bunt coverage as well as make the routine plays,” she said. “We also need to be more aggressive hitting.”