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Third time is the charm?: East hopes so heading into playoff game against Flower Mound
BY Kevin Hageland, khageland@starlocalnews.com
The Plano East softball team has been on a tear this season, amassing a 31-3 record and No. 15 ranking in USA Today/NFCA national poll.
But of those three losses, two have come to Flower Mound, the same team the Lady Panthers will face in a one-game regional quarterfinal playoff at 7:30 p.m. Friday from Denton Guyer.
"Playing Flower Mound shouldn't be a problem," said Jacque Anthony, East junior third baseman. "We are past that mental block."
Since East last made it to the Class 5A State Tournament in 2009, it is Flower Mound that has dominated the rivalry, winning six straight.
That dates back to an area playoff sweep (11-8, 7-6) of the Lady Panthers in 2010.
That is a series East remembers well ... for all the wrong reasons.
"I think we had like 13 errors, or something ridiculous, in that series," said Holly Kern, East senior pitcher.
"Oh yes, I remember that series," added Karen Kalhoefer, East head coach. "We had something like seven errors in just one game. But the girls know that because of a lot of them went through it. And we aren't that same team any more; our seniors were just sophomores then and we are a much more mature team now."
When the teams were moved into the same district last season, Flower Mound continued its winning ways, taking 2-0 and 5-2 victories. East failed to advance to the playoffs that season, finishing one game behind the Lady Jags.
That control has continued in 2012.
After an upset win over East in the first half of district play, 4-3, Flower Mound proved that victory was no fluke by pounding the Lady Panthers, 9-2, in the rematch.
"We feel like we have not played to our potential against Flower Mound this season," Kalhoefer said. "We haven't gotten the big hit with runners on and had some other miscues, so there have been a lot of missed opportunities. But credit Flower Mound too for taking advantage of opportunities when we weren't able to do the same."
The Lady Panthers have reviewed those games this week, noting the Lady Jags' ability to continually advance runners with smart running, solid bunting and the ability to continually put the ball in play.
"We wanted to go back and see what we could do to improve," Kalhoefer said.
One area East is no doubt focused on is clutch hitting. While the Lady Panthers amassed 18 hits over two games against Flower Mound starting pitcher Annelise Oswalt, they failed to make the Lady Jags pay.
"No disrespect to Annelise," Anthony said, "but I feel like now that we've seen her a couple of times, we've got her number."
Whether or not that is true remains to be seen, but it is indicative of the team-wide feeling as East is anxious for another chance to play Flower Mound.
"We're OK with playing Flower Mound and we're OK with playing just the one game," Kalhoefer said. "The girls are composed right now and they are excited about the opportunity. The girls know what we can do and they are focused on being the Plano East team we are.
"It's a redemption thing."
Kern used a different R word.
"We want to come out and surprise Flower Mound," she said. "We feel like it's finally time for revenge."
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