2007 State Championship Tournament The Bearcats headed off to the State tournament as the Wesco Champions and started the tournament with a win against Inglemoor in the first round behind Birch's three-hit shutout. Birch struck out 12 and cruised after the Bearcats scored two first-inning runs. Kayla Wangner hit a two-run homer to help Monroe reach the quarterfinal. Next up was Stadium who knocked Monroe out of the tournament last year in a 9 inning consolation game. The Bearcats jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the bottom of the second. Briar Stanley and Sarah Elledge singled to start the inning. Jenna Kirksey drove both of them in with a one-out double to deep center field for a 2-0 lead. Stadium answered immediately in the top of the third. Dudley led off with a walk. A throwing error on Becca Cable's bunt attempt put runners at second and third. Winning pitcher Jordyn Kurtz followed with a single to left-center that tied the score, 2-2. With the Bearcats down to its final out, Fretz lined a 2-1 pitch down the left field line. As she approached third, the speedy leadoff hitter turned her head and decided to go for it just as a throw from Tigers left fielder Sam Miller approached third baseman Adriana Wortley. The game ended when catcher Sarah Glennon tagged Fretz out inches in front of home plate Monroe played Graham-Kapowsin in a late loser-out consolation game immediately after the nail-biting loss but couldn't seem to bounce back, losing 2-0. The Bearcats finished their season with a 23-3 record, 9th place at the State Tournament and a Wesco Championship title. Final: Monroe-5, Ingelmoor-0 Final 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 R H E MHS 2 0 1 0 0 1 - 5 11 1 IHS 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 3 2 Emily Hardin, Megan Therson (6) and Alex Ponce; Jordan Birch and Briar Stanley. WP — Birch. LP — Hardin. Inglemoor highlights — Alex Ponce, 2-3, 2 SB. Monroe highlights — Jordan Birch, 12 Ks; Briar Stanley, 3-3; Kayla Wangner, HR. Records — Inglemoor 19-5, Monroe 23-1. Final: Monroe-2, Stadium-3 Final 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 R H E MHS 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 2 6 2 SHS 0 0 2 0 0 1 0 3 6 1 Jordyn Kurtz and Sarah Glennon; Jordan Birch and Briar Stanley. WP — Kurtz. LP — Birch. Stadium highlights — Becca Cable, 2-3, 2 2B; Jordyn Kurtz, 2-4, 2 RBI. Monroe highlights — Jordan Birch, 9 Ks; Shannon Fretz, 2-4, 2B, 3B. Records — Stadium 17-2, Monroe 23-2. Final: Monroe-0, Graham-Kapowsin-2 Final 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 R H E GKHS 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 3 1 SHS 0 1 0 0 0 1 0 2 4 3 Auriel Sperberg and Andrea Sperberg; Megan McKinney, Jordan Birch (4) and Nicole Rogers, Jenna Kirksey (4). WP — Sperberg. LP — McKinney. Graham-Kapowsin highlights — Kelsey Brown, 2-3, RBI; Auriel Sperberg, 7 IP, 3 hits, 0 ER. Records — Graham-Kapowsin 22-8, Monroe 23-3.

Bearcats 2007 District Tournament

Wesco Champions Winning the district softball title and earning the top seed into the state tournament was just icing on the cake for the Monroe Bearcats. Revenge was the primary reward. Jordan Birch pitched her second straight shutout, Tessa Degel delivered the game-winning hit in a wild sixth inning and the Bearcats got the breaks when they needed them in a 2-0 victory over Lake Stevens in the Class 4A District 1 championship game Saturday afternoon at Sky River Park. "It was a great ballgame by both teams," Monroe head coach Curt Eskeback said. "They're both champions ... it was just a very good fastpitch game." Monroe and Lake Stevens split their two games during the regular season, with the Bearcats winning the first meeting 5-0 but losing the second 1-0 - Monroe's only loss. "It was really important (to beat Lake Stevens)," Birch said after the game. "That's the only team we've lost to (this season), so to get revenge was really important to us." Both the Vikings and Bearcats earned berths in the state tournament by virtue of advancing to the district final. With the victory, Monroe secured the district's top seed into the state playoffs beginning Friday in Tacoma. "First seed you definitely get a better draw into state," Lake Stevens head coach Sue Van Wyhe said. "It would have been nice to (win) today, but we knew we're headed to state, so we had nothing to lose." Their third meeting of the year left little doubt the Vikings and Bearcats know each other well. Birch and Lake Stevens starting pitcher Athea Surface battled through long at-bats, with the opposing batters fouling off pitch after pitch. "They knew me, we knew (Surface)," Birch said. "It was whoever would get the hits first or the runs first." Through five innings the pitchers were winning the battles at the plate - and seemed to be getting stronger. Surface allowed four hits in the first three innings but retired the Bearcats in order in the fourth and fifth. Through three innings Birch gave up two hits - Lake Steven's only hits of the game - and she also retired the side in order in the fourth and fifth. Birch, who tossed a 1-0 shutout against Stanwood in the semifinals on Thursday, finished with four strikeouts and walked three. She also was 2-for-2 at the plate. Surface struck out five and walked one. With the teams deadlocked, extra innings looked to be a distinct possibility as the Monroe came up in the bottom of the sixth. And then things started to go the Bearcats' way. Birch led off the Bearcats' sixth inning by hitting a hard grounder up the middle that caromed off Surface's glove to Vikings shortstop Jordan Rumsey. Rumsey's throw to first base appeared to be in time but Birch was ruled safe by the umpire. "That wasn't a tie ... (The umpire) said he called (Birch) safe because he felt she got there first," Van Wyhe said. "I disagreed ... but they called it a hit." Birch advanced on Kayla Wangner's sacrifice bunt but had to stay at second when Brian Stanley's grounder was scooped up by Vikings third baseman Sydney Buser, who ran Birch back to the base. With Bearcats at first and second, Sarah Elledge fouled off Surface's first pitch, then took three straight balls. On the third ball, Elledge dropped her bat and headed to first base as if she had walked. Birch and Stanley also advanced. Time was not called by the umpire until after the runners had advanced, so when Elledge returned to the plate to complete her at-bat, Birch and Stanley remained at third and second, respectively - credited with uncontested stolen bases. Van Wyhe again protested, but to no avail. "It wasn't a trick play or anything," Elledge said. "I really thought it was a full count." After Elledge flied out - Rumsey made a running over the shoulder catch in shallow left field - for the Bearcats' second out, Tessa Degel stepped to the plate and lined the third pitch she saw up the middle for a two-run single. "I wasn't thinking that much ... It was my pitch, I liked it and I swung," said Degel, who finished 2-for-3. "Good things happened." The Vikings' Van Wyhe said after the game that even without the controversial stolen bases, Degel's solid hit probably would have scored the one run Monroe needed to win a tightly contested game. "We play well against Monroe; always do," Van Wyhe said. "Hopefully we'll meet them at state." Revenge can be a powerful motivator. Final: Monroe-2, Lake Stevens-0 Final 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 R H E MHS 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 4 1 LSHS 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 2 Kiss State Hello Beating an opponent three times in a season is a feat often attempted but rarely accomplished. The added pressure of a state berth on the line and a seven-game winning streak were no problem for the Monroe Bearcats, who accomplished all three goals by coolly doing what they've done all season. Hand the ball to Jordan Birch. And with the weight of state on her shoulders, she was nearly flawless. Fueled by Birch's second complete-game shutout of the day, the Wesco North No. 1 seed Bearcats edged North No. 3 seed Stanwood 1-0 in a winner-to-state game Thursday at Sky River Park. The victory completed Monroe's three-game season sweep of Stanwood and propelled the Bearcats (21-1 overall) to the 4A District 1 championship game against North No. 2 seed Lake Stevens (15-5) at 3 p.m. Saturday at Sky River Park. Monroe also defeated South No. 4 seed Shorewood 1-0 in its first-round game Thursday. Stanwood (14-6), victorious in its first-round game against Mountlake Terrace, plays South No. 3 seed Kamiak (11-11) in a loser-out game at 1 p.m. Saturday, also at Sky River Park. "By seeing Stanwood three times, they knew my pitches, so today I really relied on my defense to back me up," said Birch, whose defense didn't allow an error in either victory. "It also helped that my rise ball was working awesome today," she added. Birch struck out 11 batters, gave up one hit and faced just 23 batters against the Spartans. Stanwood starter Corinne Stillman tried her best to match Birch. She retired the first eight batters she faced on her way to a complete-game, two-hit performance. But it only takes one run. And Monroe got one in the bottom of the fourth. Bearcat Kayla Wangner pulled a one-out single to left field that was mis-played, and when she attempted to stretch her single into a double, the Stanwood left fielder overthrew the second baseman. Wangner took third and scored when the same errant throw went out of play, giving the Bearcats a 1-0 lead. "It was a great ballgame, but at this level, it only takes one mistake," said Monroe coach Curt Eskeback. "And today we took advantage of it." Monroe's only other scoring chance came in the bottom of the sixth when Carly Bosse and Birch opened the inning with a walk and single, respectively. Stanwood's defense responded, though, with a 1-3-2 double play and a harmless pop-out to end the threat. But there was nothing the Spartan bats could do to get to Monroe's junior. Once given the lead, Birch did what any ace is supposed to do: she retired the Stanwood hitters in order in the fifth, sixth and seventh innings and punctuated Monroe's return to state with her 11th strikeout to end the game. "Our No. 1 goal was to get back to state, now we want to win it," said Eskeback. "We've been a bit over-anxious (hitting), so having secured the state berth takes the pressure off a little for now." At least they won't have three-peat pressure to deal with Saturday, as Lake Stevens is the only team this year to defeat Monroe - 1-0 on April 24th. But could that add pressure, knowing you face the only team to beat you, with the District title on the line? Not according to Birch: "We're really pumped up and excited, so we'll come out confident." Final: Monroe-1, Stanwood-0 Final 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 R H E MHS 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 1 2 0 SWHS 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 Stillman and Bingham. Birch and Stanley. WP-Birch (21-1). LP-Stillman. Records-Stanwood 14-6 overall. Monroe 21-1. Monroe 1, Shorewood 0: At Monroe, Jordan Birch struck out 16 batters and Briar Stanley drove in the game-winning run on a first-inning sacrifice fly for the Bearcats in a 4A District 1 first-round playoff game. Final: Monroe-1, Shorewood-0 Final 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 R H E MHS 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 6 0 SWHS 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0

Bearcats 2007 Season Highlights 2nd Half

Monroe takes second straight title On senior day and the Bearcats last home game of the season, Birch enters in relief and stifles an Oak Harbor rally in the Bearcats' 5-4 win. Jordan Birch usually starts on the mound for the Monroe Bearcats. Tuesday she finished. Birch entered Tuesday's game against Oak Harbor in the third inning with the bases loaded and one out. She struck out the next two batters and had 12 strikeouts over the final 52/3 innings to help Monroe beat Oak Harbor 5-4 and secure the Wesco North championship. "She's a leader and a competitor and comes to play everyday." Monroe coach Curt Eskeback said. Birch, who also batted 4-for-4, improved her record to 18-1. Nicole Rogers batted 2-for-4 and drove in Briar Stanley with the game-winning run to help the Bearcats clinch their second straight division title. "I'm really proud of our program," Eskeback said. "We have really good coaches and athletes." Final: Monroe-5, Oak Harbor-4 Final 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 R H E MHS 3 0 0 0 1 0 1 5 8 2 OHHS 2 0 2 0 0 0 0 4 6 3 Ratliff and Carrothers. Wiegele, Birch (3) and Kirksey. WP-Birch (18-1). LP-Ratliff. Records-Oak Harbor 0-15 league, 2-16 overall. Monroe 14-1, 18-1. May 9th 2007 - Monroe vs. Snohomish Monroe 5, Snohomish 1: At Snohomish, Jordan Birch pitched a complete game, striking out 11 batters and allowing only one unearned run to improve to 19-1 for Monroe in the Wesco North game. Ashley Wiegle was 2-for-4 with two runs scored for the Bearcats. Snohomish was led by Taylor Steed, who was 2-for-4. Final: Monroe-5, Snohomish-1 Final 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 R H E MHS 0 0 1 4 0 0 0 5 7 3 SHS 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 1 6 2 Birch and Stanley. Riedeman, Johnson (4), Chrisman (5) and Wensell. WP-Birch (19-1). LP-Johnson (0-1). 2B-Wiegle (M), Degel (M). Records-Monroe 15-1 league, 19-1 overall. Snohomish 6-10, 10-10. May 4th 2007 - Monroe vs. Arlington Monroe 2, Arlington 1 (8 inn.): At Arlington, Kayla Wangner was 3-for-4 with two doubles, a triple and an RBI and she scored the game-winning run in the eighth inning on a single by Briar Stanley to lead Monroe to the Wesco North win. Sheena Twitchell had an RBI triple for Arlington in the first inning. Final: Monroe-2, Arlington-0 Final 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 R H E MHS 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 1 2 10 1 AHS 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 5 1 Birch and Stanley. Nicely, Rayner (8) and Twitchell. WP-Birch. LP-Nicely. 2B-Wangner (M) 2, Elledge (M), Wiegele (M). 3B-Twitchell (A), Wangner (M). Records-Monroe 13-1 league, 17-1 overall. Arlington 3-10, 5-12. May 2nd 2007 - Monroe vs. Cascade Final: Monroe-4, Cascade-0 Final 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 R H E MHS 2 0 1 0 1 0 0 4 7 0 CHS 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 1 May 1st 2007 - Monroe vs. Marysville-Pilchuck Monroe 11, Marysville-Pilchuck 1: At Marysville, Kayla Wangner was 2-for-3 with three runs scored and two RBI and was one of three Bearcats to hit a home run in the Wesco North victory. Jessica Tanigawa was 2-for-2 with a double and a run scored for the Tomahawks. Final: Monroe-11, Marysville-Pilchuck-1 Final 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 R H E MHS 2 5 1 1 2 - - 11 11 0 MPHS 1 0 0 0 0 - - 1 5 0 Birch and Stanley. Rosebrook, Rosie (3) and Perrine. WP-Birch. LP-Rosebrook. 2B-Birch (M), Elledge (M), Tanigawa (M-P), Starcevic (M-P), Rosie (M-P). HR-Wangner (M), Stanley (M), Kirksey (M). Records-Monroe 11-1 in division, 15-1 overall. Marysville-Pilchuck 3-9, 4-10. April 25th 2007 - Monroe vs. Meadowdale Monroe 10, Meadowdale 0: At Monroe, Jordan Birch pitched a two-hitter and struck out 11 batters while batting 2-for-2 with a home run, three runs scored and two stolen bases; Kayla Wangner batted 2-for-4 with a home run, two runs scored and three RBI; Shannon Fretz batted 2-for-4 with two runs scored and two steals, and Emily Drivstuen batted 2-for-3 with two RBI to lead Monroe to the non-league win. Final: Monroe-10, Meadowdale-0 Final 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 R H E MHS 2 0 1 0 6 1 - 10 10 0 MHS 0 0 0 0 0 0 - 0 2 2 Wold, Ball (5) and Mills. Birch and Stanley. WP-Birch (14-1). LP-Wold. HR-Birch (Mo), Wangner (Mo). Records-Meadowdale 2-10 overall. Monroe 14-1. Lake Stevens dashes home with upset After two hours and 40 minutes of scoreless softball, Britney Running and the surging Lake Stevens Vikings finally broke through. Running, a sophomore, broke a scoreless tie when she slid safely into home plate following a passed ball. The sequence was the difference for Lake Stevens in its marathon 1-0, 12-inning upset victory Tuesday over previously unbeaten Monroe. "I just ran! I just went for it. I was really excited," the right fielder said. Lake Stevens overcame five fielding errors and another excellent pitching performance by Monroe's Jordan Birch (10 strikeouts) to prevail in the key Western Conference North Division battle at Park Place Field. Pitchers Morgan Harris and Athea Surface combined for nine strikeouts and allowed just two hits for the Vikings (8-2 in division, 9-2 overall), who have won eight straight games since falling 5-0 against Monroe (10-1, 13-1) March 27 at Lake Stevens. That defeat motivated Lake Stevens, which had several players limited by injuries the last time it faced Monroe. "These guys are unbelievable," Lake Stevens coach Sue Van Wyhe said of her team. "They have so much heart. They wanted it so badly." Both teams had numerous scoring opportunities, but key defensive efforts, excellent pitching and some poor offensive execution kept the scored knotted at 0-0 through 11 innings. In accordance with the tiebreaker rule, starting in the 11th inning each team began with a runner on second base. After a scoreless 11th in which both squads moved a runner to third base but failed to convert, Running was on second base to start the top of the 12th. Danie Birklid's one-out sacrifice bunt moved Running to third. With two out and a 1-0 count on pinch hitter Annie Thomas, Birch's pitch tipped off of Monroe catcher Briar Stanley's mitt. As the ball trickled to the backstop, Running zoomed home and slid across the plate ahead of Stanley's desperation throw to Birch. Lake Stevens exploded in celebration. Surface pitched a 1-2-3 bottom of the 12th to end it. "Oh my gosh! It felt so great. I'm so pumped," said Running. First-place Monroe suffered its first defeat after 13 straight victories. Bearcats coach Curt Eskeback said Lake Stevens always seems to compete well against his squad. "Both teams have good athletes and they're very competitive. They always play us tough," he said. Monroe entered the game averaging more than seven runs and nine hits per game, but the pitching combo of Harris and Surface shut down the Bearcats' bats. Harris started and Surface (5-1) pitched the final 72/3 innings. "It's just a great combination for those two," Van Wyhe said. "They complement each other so well." Despite the loss, Monroe clinched a District 1 playoff berth when Cascade lost to Everett. With the league schedule winding down, Monroe and Lake Stevens will fight to secure the division's No. 1 seed for the Class 4A district tournament. The top four 4A Wesco North teams advance to district. Lake Stevens plays host to Marysville-Pilchuck on Thursday. Monroe plays a non-division makeup game today against Meadowdale at Park Place Field. Final: Monroe-0, Lake Stevens-1 Final 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 R H E MHS 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 2 MHS 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 5 5 Harris, Surface (5) and Thibodeaux. Birch and Stanley. WP-Surface (5-1). LP-Birch (13-1). 3B-Personius (LS). Records-Lake Stevens 8-2 in division, 9-2 overall. Monroe 10-1, 13-1 Birch near-perfect in Monroe victory There's no other way to put it. Jordan Birch was good. Really good. The Monroe softball team's junior right-hander pitched a no-hitter on Friday, leading the Bearcats (10-0 league, 13-0 overall) to a 2-0 victory over Stanwood (6-4, 8-4) in Wesco North play. Birch (13-0), coming off a complete-game shutout of Everett Thursday, struck out 12 Stanwood hitters and was a hit batsman away from a perfect game. "Jordan had total control today. Her riseball and curveball were both working," Bearcats coach Curt Eskeback said. Stanwood's Corinne Stillman pitched well, going seven innings, giving up two runs on four hits and striking out seven. But, two runs were two too many against Birch and Monroe. Bearcats senior Kayla Wangner hit a first-inning solo home run to take an early 1-0 lead. In the third, Shannon Fretz walked, stole second and advanced to third on a Birch base hit. Wangner tallied her second RBI on a groundout, putting the Bearcats up 2-0 and ahead for good. Monroe can clinch a 4A district playoff berth with its next win. The 'Cats take on streaking Lake Stevens (7-2, 8-2) Tuesday at Park Place Field in Monroe. "That's our goal, we want to become the No. 1 seed from District 1 to the state tournament," Eskeback said. Final: Monroe-2, Stanwood-0 Final 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 R H E MHS 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 2 4 1 MHS 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 Birch and Stanley. Stillman and Bingham. WP-Birch (13-0). LP-Stillman. HR-Wangner (M) Records-Monroe 10-0 league, 13-0 overall. Stanwood 6-4, 8-4. Birch + Stanley = Monroe win Pitcher, catcher combo provide Bearcats with winning formula For the Monroe softball team, this season's formula for success has been simple. Jordan Birch pitches, Briar Stanley hits and the Bearcats win. And for the 12th consecutive game, Monroe (9-0 league, 12-0 overall) executed that strategy to perfection. The Bearcats got a stellar pitching performance from Birch (12-0) and three clutch runs batted in from Stanley to remain undefeated and overpower Wesco North rival Everett 6-0 on Thursday at Park Place Field. In a game that featured two of the region's most dominant junior pitchers, Birch and her Lake Breeze Gold select softball teammate Cory Mattson (9-3) of Everett, both proved they've got great potential. Birch tossed a complete-game shutout, striking out nine batters and allowing just three hits, while Mattson also threw a complete-game and struck out 12. "We know what each other throw and how we pitch, but once our teammates are in the (batters) box, its up to them," Birch replied when asked whether she tips off her teammates to Mattson's style. One player who didn't need any batting tips was Stanley, who also happens to be the catcher on that same Lake Breeze select team. Stanley, a sophomore, batted 2-for-3 with a triple and three RBI in a game that her coach considered typical this season. "Briar's our clean-up hitter and has been the big gun all season," Bearcat coach Curt Eskeback said. "She's got three home runs, four or five triples and leads us in RBI." In the second inning, Monroe manufactured two runs when leadoff hitter Sarah Elledge singled, was sacrificed to second, moved to third on a wild pitch and scored on Ashley Wiegele's bunt single to go up 1-0. Another RBI bunt single by Shannon Fretz made the score 2-0. In the third, Stanley hit an RBI triple that drove in Kayla Wangner to put the 'Cats up 3-0. A sacrifice fly by Elledge made it 4-0. Birch hit her stride in the fourth inning when she retired Everett in order on just six pitches. "My (arm) speed started to go a bit, so I started using my legs more," Birch said. "It also helped that I had confidence in my change-up today." In the bottom of the fourth, Monroe got two more insurance runs when Stanley hit a two-run single to drive in Fretz and Jenna Kirksey to make the score 6-0. Mattson allowed only one hit the rest of the day, but the offense just couldn't get to Birch, who didn't allow a hit after the third inning. "We had a couple shots early, but against a pitcher like Jordan, you have to take advantage and today we didn't," Everett coach Kyle Peacocke said. Everett (6-3, 10-3) did play better than the last time the two teams met. Birch pitched a perfect game and defeated the Seagulls 4-0 March 20th. "Two of our three losses are against Monroe so we're glad not to face them again this year," Peacocke said. Everett, a 3A team that competes in the mostly 4A Wesco North, will play in the 3A district tournament. Final: Monroe-2, Everett-0 Final 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 R H E MHS 0 2 2 2 0 0 - 6 7 2 EHS 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 3 2 Mattson and Welly. Birch and Stanley. WP-Birch (12-0). LP-Mattson (9-3). 3B-Stanley (M). Records-Everett 6-3 league, 10-3 overall. Monroe 9-0, 12-0.