3 observations as power-packed Parkway Tournament helps kick off softball season in style

The talent-rich three-day and 12-team affair began Tuesday and will conclude with the championship game between Westminster (5-0) and Parkway West (5-0) at 6:30 p.m. Thursday.

Here are some observations from quarterfinal and semifinal round play Wednesday.

1. Youth is served at Parkway West

The Longhorns used freshman power to roll past Hillsboro 7-4 in a round of eight affair in afternoon play.

Freshman hurler Keira Pritchard picked up the win along with help from freshman catcher Natalie House.

The two newbies were strong down the stretch.

"(Pritchard) pounds the zone and she misses a lot of barrels," West coach Andrew Jett said. "Our catcher does a good job of controlling the running game."

The dynamic duo has known one another since they were in kindergarten. They also attended Pierremont Elementary School together.

"Being a freshman you're not expecting to start on varsity," House said. "It's special to be starting on this team."

Jett has full trust in House and allows her to call the pitches.

Pritchard, who has an array of five different offerings, rarely disagrees with her friend on pitch selections.

But there is that rare instance.

"She shakes me off every once in a while," said House, who is hitting .455. "Then, I just let her pick a number and she does what she wants to do."

The two 14-year-olds have looked like seasoned veterans during the first two weeks of the season.

Pritchard, who has a 3-0 record, doesn't think about the age difference when she faces 17- and 18-year-old hitters.

"Once you get to high school, it just depends on if you can hit or not or pitch or not," Pritchard said. "You're either good, or not so good."

Pritchard has been more than just good. She allowed one earned run over five-plus innings in an 8-3 win over Marquette in her big league debut.

"We knew those two had played some high level ball and we knew they had some talent there," Jett said. "They've both stepped into their roles well and to see them do what they've been doing has been impressive."

The two are friends away from the field as well and rarely disagree about anything.

"I've known her for so long," Pritchard said. "There's not a lot we don't know about one another."

2. Queens of the long ball

Francis Howell North has developed an early season penchant for home runs.

The Knights slammed nine round trippers in a 25-hour period covering pool play and semifinal round play Tuesday and Wednesday.

"I think they've been working out a lot," joked Howell North coach Mike Freedline.

He admitted that his players have displayed a lot of patience at the dish, which leads to success.

"They just level it," Freedline said. "They're waiting on the right pitch and taking advantage of it."

Junior Kayla Spoors led the charge Wednesday with a pair of two-run homers including a key drive in an 8-6 win over Parkway Central in a quarterfinal affair. She also went deep in a 9-6 loss to Westminster in the semifinal round.

Sophomore Leah Fajatin drilled three homers in the stretch including two in an 11-0 win over Kirkwood on Tuesday.

"We don't try for homers, we swing for base hits," Fajatin said. "They (home runs) just come."

Freedline is not afraid to give his hitters a green light on 3-0 and 3-1 counts.

"He has confidence in us and knows we understand what a good pitch is,"Fajatin said.

The Knights (3-2) have scored 40 runs in five games this season.

"Everyone knows their role from the top to the bottom of the lineup," Spoors said "We have bunters, we have a slappers.

And we have a lot of home run hitters."

3. And the winner is ... softball

Westminster Academy senior Allie Branstetter spent many sleepless nights over the summer trying to decide whether to pursue a softball or ice hockey career in college.

She has been offered NCAA Division I scholarships in both sports and the decision was weighing on her mind.

"In prime hockey season, I'd say I want to end up playing hockey," she said. "Then in prime softball season, it was the other way around."

Three weeks ago, Branstetter decided on softball. And she choose to stay local accepting a scholarship to play at St. Louis University.

A true two-sport standout, she is a dynamic scorer with the AAA St. Louis Lady Blues women's hockey team. The growth of that sport gave her several college opportunities.

But softball won by a nose at the wire.

"Staying at home was important to me," Branstetter said.

Westminster coach Dan Petke has seen Branstetter grow from an above average softball player to a great one over the past two years.

"At the start, she had a love for hockey that trumped softball," Petke said. "I thought she was going that way. But she's just so talented, she could have gone either way and it wouldn't surprise us."

Branstetter remains a member of the Lady Blues and will play hockey until that season ends in March.

She hit a three-run homer to lead the Wildcats to a 9-6 win over Howell North in a semifinal contest Wednesday.