Despite what the standings said, there was plenty to play for when the Bandits took on the Blaze this week in Rosemont.
Even though the Bandits were locked into the second seed in the upcoming AUSL Championship Series, they wanted to make sure they reached the weekend with all systems go.
It was a mixed bag in the two-game set, with the Bandits losing 12-6 and winning 5-1 to finish the regular season with a 15-9 record. Here is how it went:
Ouch, that hurts!
The Blaze scored a pair of unearned runs in the top of the first inning Tuesday before the Bandits answered with three in the bottom half, two coming on an RBI single by Erin Coffel and another scoring on Jordan Roberts’ groundout.
The lead didn’t last long, and the Blaze went on to a 12-6 victory. The Blaze sent nine players to the plate in the second and scored six runs. The big blast was a two-run homer by Ana Gold, who added a solo shot in the fourth.
The Bandits lost two players to injury. Shortstop Skylar Wallace left in the second while falling over Devyn Netz as she tagged her out at second base. Wallace rolled her right ankle. In the third, pitcher Odicci Alexander was hit by a line drive off the bat of Aubrey Leach and had to leave the game.
On the positive side of the ledger for the Bandits, Morgan Zerkle hit her ninth homer of the season in the second. Rookie Cori McMillan lined a two-run single to center in the third.
“It was a tough night,” said Bandits Head Coach Stacey Nuveman Deniz. “It was a very tough night. Glad to see the game end if I’m being honest. I’m more concerned with Tuscaloosa and just hope we can get them back. And if not, we’re going to move forward and do what we can do to compete for a championship regardless.”
Bandits win a game, McKinney wins a batting title
The Bandits rebounded with a clean game Wednesday night, taking a 1-0 lead in the first inning and pulling away late for a 5-1 victory.
Infielder Sydney McKinney may have operated in the shadows of Coffel and Zerkle when it comes to offense, but she moved to the forefront by going 4-for-4 with three singles and a two-run home run. That homer came in the sixth inning to give the Bandits some much-needed insurance.
When the night was over, McKinney emerged as the AUSL batting champion, with her .486 average (36-for-74).
Most astonishing is that the Bandits finished 1-2-3-4 in the race for the battling title with McKinney leading the way, followed by Zerkle (.419), Coffel (.410) and Wallace (.390).
“I feel like on the Bandits we’re all really close, and we’re all very supportive of each other,” McKinney said. “When we’re going through slumps or when we’re doing really good, we’re really good at sharing information. It’s been really helpful to have them on my team. I just know that I had Zerkle before me and after me (in different lineups), and if I didn’t get the job done, it was going to get done.”
In the circle, lefty Emiley Kennedy pitched three scoreless innings to set the tone early.
“You always want to come out with whoever is in the starting role to set the tone,” Nuveman Deniz said. “I thought she did a really nice job of that. She was commanding the zone. When she’s doing that, when she’s throwing strikes, she’s a very effective pitcher. I think when she gets into trouble, she starts picking the edges a little bit. Tonight she was, boom, she was spot on. Off-speed pitch was working well. Yeah, it was a great start to the game, and it allowed our offense to kind of settle in and make something happen as the game went along.”
Lexi Kilfoyl came on in relief and earned the win with two innings of shutout ball. She improved to 6-1 with a 2.35 ERA and is a good possibility to start Game 1 of the AUSL Championship Series on Saturday. Taylor McQuillin worked the final two innings to earn her fourth save.
Wallace did not play. As a result, Coffel moved from second base to shortstop, a position she played in college. McKinney moved to second base after serving much of the season as the designated player.
The Bandits hope Wallace is ready for the Championship Series. For now, it’s all hands on deck.
“I think that’s how it’s been all year,” McKinney said. “Like Coach Nuveman said, we’re just all trying to get the job done, and the goal is to win a championship. So we’re going to do whatever it takes to get that done.”
Bruce Miles has covered sports in the Chicago area for 46 years, including baseball, hockey, football and Athletes Unlimited Pro Softball. He covered the Chicago Cubs in their historic run to the World Series title in 2016. He has written stories for Athletes Unlimited since 2020. Follow Bruce on Bluesky @brucemiles2112.bsky.social and X @brucemiles2112
