Kelly, Notre Dame ready for quarterfinal action

~ The Bulldogs put their perfect 27-0 record on the line today.

Rhonda Ratledge wanted a schedule packed with challenges to prepare properly for the next two weeks.

Ratledge's Kelly Hawks faced Notre Dame, a Class 3 state quarterfinalist, twice this season. Kelly played in the Jackson tournament and the Notre Dame SoftballFest. She wanted a battle-tested team that could stand up to the pressure of the state softball tournament. She'll see if the preparation paid off when Kelly plays Principia in a Class 2 state quarterfinal game today at 3 p.m. at the Ballwin Athletic Association in Park Hills, Mo.

"I've kind of looked at [Principia[']s] schedule and I think they pretty much kind of have a weak schedule," Ratledge said. "I'm hoping that's where we're going to come out on top. We go to the Jackson tournament and we were in the Notre Dame tournament. ... You do have that pressure during those tournaments. I hope we're able to handle that pressure better than they are."

Principia enters with a 15-4 record after defeating Belle 3-2 in the sectional round. Jenna Martson leads the team with a .660 batting average, 11 triples, two homers, 34 RBIs and 17 stolen bases, according to the Web site stltoday.com.

"You pitch around her and hope there's no one else on in front of her," Ratledge said. "From what I've been told, when she's got runners on in front of her, she hits to the fence and clears them. Hopefully she's going to get a lot of junk thrown to her."

Ratledge is confident her offense will be able to keep up with Principia. The Hawks scored nine runs in their sectional game, a 9-2 win over East Carter. Kelly bunted at will to get runners on base and create scoring chances.

"Up and down the lineup, the girls have been putting the ball in play," Ratledge said.

Notre Dame will continue its march toward a state title when it faces Affton in a Class 3 state quarterfinal today at the Ballwin Athletic Association. The Bulldogs' game is scheduled to start at 11 a.m.

Notre Dame has used a balanced attack to remain undefeated (27-0). Sophomore pitcher Lauren Reinagel has pitched exceptionally well and her offense has provided plenty of support.

"We're expecting another good outing from Lauren just because she's given us one every year," Notre Dame coach Jeff Graviett said. "We're depending on that. It's going to come down to execution on the offensive end, scoring runs. We really need to put up three or four runs to be successful."

Affton enters at 26-3 after routing Westminster Christian Academy 11-0 in five innings in their sectional game. According to stltoday.com, Katy McAllister led the Cougars with a .522 batting average, 11 triples, five homers and 25 RBIs. The team had six players with at least 70 plate appearances hit over .340. Plus pitcher Kourtney VonBehren went 22-3 with a 1.27 ERA.

"She's a hard-thrower, a right-hander is all I got," Graviett said. "It's not the type of movement we saw from De Soto, but she throws a little bit harder."

The Bulldogs counter with their own hard-thrower, Reinagel. She posted four no-hitters in five outings earlier this season, including an 11-0 win against Festus in the Class 3 District 2 title game. Even though Reinagel is only a sophomore, Graviett isn't worried about nerves being an issue today.

"I told her this isn't going to be the biggest game she throws all year, hopefully," he said. "She'll be a little a nervous when she gets there, but she'll focus in and be ready to go for the first pitch."