Rochester John Marshall High School Athletics

AUSTIN — Rochester John Marshall ran into the top team in Section One, Class AAAA softball at an unexpected time.

And that meant the end of a very good season for the Rockets.

John Marshall, the No. 3 seed in the section tournament, fell to top-seeded New Prague 11-1 on Tuesday in a loser-out game at Todd Park. JM (15-8 overall) had a strong tournament run, beating rival Century by 10-run rule, and losing by just one run to second-seeded Farmington in the section quarterfinals.

The loss also means the end of the high school careers of seven talented seniors.

“It was a pleasure to coach our team this year, and especially the seven seniors who have provided great leadership and left their mark on our program,” Rockets coach Thang Nguyen said.

New Prague (18-4) pulled away early, scoring three runs in the bottom of the second, then putting together a six-run third inning, including a two-out, three-run home run, for a 9-1 lead.

JM scored its run in the top of the third inning, when Melanie Sadecki singled and eventually scored on a bases loaded fielder's choice grounder by Grace Freed. Megan Karp and Kaitlyn Ward also had one hit each for JM.

“Unfortunately we fell into an early hole as New Prague took advantage of a few mistakes and came up with some clutch hits. We couldn’t string together enough offense to stay in the game.”

New Prague 11, JM 1

JM 001 00 — 1 3 2

NP 036 02 — 11 12 2

John Marshall: Melanie Sadecki 1-for-2; Kaitlyn Ward 1-for-2; Megan Karp 1-for-3. Pitchers: Emma Bartholomew (LP) 3 IP, 8 H, 9 R, 8 ER, 2 BB, 1 K; Abby Miles 1 1/3 IP, 4 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 1 BB, 1 K.

New Prague: Kennedy Buckman 3-for-4, 1 HR, 4 RBI, 1 R; Emily Schmitz 2-for-2, 1 2B, 3 RBI, 2 R; Maddie Chromy 3-for-3, 1 2B, 2 RBI, 3 R. Pitcher: Mia Kraimer (WP) 5 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 9 K.