- April 18, 2024
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Palm Coast's Chloe Baker throws a pitch against Mims. Photo by Ray Boone
Chloe Rudy swings at a pitch against Mims. Photo by Ray Boone
Chloe Baker and Joan Bailey smile as they make their way to the dugout. Photo by Ray Boone
Palm Coast celebrates after retiring a side. Photo by Ray Boone
Chloe Baker slides into second base against Mims. Photo by Ray Boone
Two Palm Coast softball players smile as they jog toward the dugout after closing out an inning. Photo by Ray Boone
A Palm Coast player throws a ball toward first base. Photo by Ray Boone
Through two innings, Palm Coast's 12U all-star softball team was neck-and-neck with Mims Little League. Palm Coast got on the board in the top of the first, and starting pitcher Chloe Baker struck out three-straight hitters to keep her team down one point after two frames.
However, as the game wore on, the high temperature started to wear on the girls, Palm Coast's head coach Patrick Johnan said.
"They started off hot," he said. "And the temperature just kept rising and rising. We started making mental mistakes."
Mims scored seven runs in the third inning to take a 9-2 lead and went on to run-rule Palm Coast 12-2 through five innings in the sectional tournament on the afternoon of Saturday, July 7, in Port St. John. The loss eliminated Palm Coast's all stars, who were run-ruled 21-0 by Yulee Saturday morning, from the postseason.
"They had one bad inning, but other than that, they played hard," Johnan said. "So I'm proud of them."
Johnan, who served as Palm Coast Little League's president since 2015, stepped down from the position at the conclusion of the season. However, he will continue to coach as well as serve on the league's board.
"Coaching these girls has been my pleasure," he said. "It's tough to be the president and be a coach at the same time, but the girls have been great. They fought all the way, and I'm proud to be called their coach. I'll see them in the future, definitely."
