Senior utility player Miranda Quigley may not have the highest of profiles on the local high school softball scene for St. Charles North, but if she keeps this up, it’s going to rise.
Welcome to the spotlight.
Quigley — sometimes the catcher, sometimes the designated hitter and sometimes an outfielder — had a day to remember Friday afternoon for the North Stars.
“This is huge,” Quigley said. “It’s very special. The adrenaline rush is crazy. It’s big because it’s the crosstown game and an important conference game.
“We knew we had to come out on top because St. Charles East has a really good group of girls and I think they’ve really improved since last year, so it was super fun.”
“It” was host St. Charles North’s 1-0 eight-inning victory in a DuKane Conference showdown.
Quigley snapped a long string of zeroes on the scoreboard, slicing a two-out, walk-off single to right field to score Abby Zawadzki from second base for the North Stars (8-0, 2-0).
Zawadzki, a senior right-hander, picked up the pitching win by throwing a five-hitter with nine strikeouts and four walks while facing a strong wind blowing in from left field.
Makayla Van Dinther, a senior right-hander and Wisconsin-Parkside commit, teamed up with Hannah Wulf, a senior lefty and South Carolina commit, to match Zawadzki pitch for pitch until the fateful eighth for St. Charles East (12-4, 1-1).
Van Dinther started and worked three innings. Wulf closed it out, recording nine of the Saints’ 12 strikeouts. They each allowed four hits and three walks.
“Hits and runs are very, very difficult to come by against two pitchers like that,” St. Charles North coach Tom Poulin said. “They have some great options. Can you imagine bringing (Wulf) in to finish a game? She’s one of the best I’ve ever seen.”
Quigley, meanwhile, struck out in her first three at-bats.
“They’re both super good,” she said of the Saints’ pitchers. “Hannah is a little faster and I feel has more spin. Plus, it’s different seeing the lefty, probably because we’re so used to seeing righties.”
Runners were on first and second when Quigley stepped up to the plate.
“I knew with runners on, I had to put the ball in play because my first three at-bats weren’t the best,” Quigley said. “I felt like I needed to hunt for a pitch early.
“When I get behind in the count, it usually doesn’t go well.”
She saw a first-pitch strike and swung.
“I think the wind helped my ball curve and tail away from the fielder,” Quigley said.
Pitchers on both sides worked out of jams. Van Dinther escaped having runners on second and third with no outs in the third and the North Stars’ 2-3-4 hitters coming up.
“Nine times out of 10, we’re gonna score at least a run there,” Poulin said. “Abby kept us in it and we made some plays behind her.”
That included junior third baseman Julianna Kouba gobbling up a wicked smash off the bat of South Carolina-bound senior catcher Hayden Sujack and throwing her out and sophomore catcher Jillian Salter nailing two runners trying to steal.
“Defense and pitching is what’s going to win us what we want to win, even though this offense has been our most productive ever in my time here,” Poulin said.
It helps to have production from players like Quigley, a Missouri-St. Louis recruit who batted .222 in 17 games last season but is hitting .333 this spring.
“She’s a great catcher, can play outfield as well as bunt and hit,” Poulin said. “She’s kind of under the radar, but she’s a good player, senior leader and just the epitome of a teammate.
“I feel I could shuffle this lineup, pull them out of a hat and one through nine can hit, and Miranda is one of them. To put it in play against Wulf and hit it pretty hard, that’s impressive.”
