In the Circle

Let's go "In the Circle" with Salina Ortho, Kansas Pregame's look at some top softball stories from across the state, presented by Central Kansas' largest Orthopedic's Practice, Salina Ortho.

Santa Fe Trail moved to 18-4 on Monday after earning two wins over Burlington (13-5). In the first game, the Chargers won 8-0 behind the dominant arm of senior KU softball signee Kaelee Washington, who pitched her third perfect game of the season and struck out 18 of 21 batters faced, putting her over 700 career strikeouts at 715. Game 2 saw the Chargers get behind 4-2 after the first inning, before a five run third inning gained Santa Fe Trial the lead for the remainder of the game with a 7-4 final. Junior Brooke Neidhardt and freshman Kailyn Claypool both went two for three at the plate with two RBIs, while sophomore pitcher Gretchen Huizenga earned her sixth win of the season after striking out six batters through seven innings. 

The Chargers face their last regular season matchup of the spring today against Iola (15-9), before beginning regional tournament play on May 14th with a bracket featuring Silver Lake (19-2) and defending 3A state champs Rossville (17-3). The Bulldawgs ended Santa Fe Trail's campaigns in both of the last two postseasons, with the Chargers finishing 2023 as the 3A runner-up after a 2-0 state chamionship loss, and the year prior in 2022 fourth in 3A after losing 2-1 in the third place game.

To read more on Washington and Santa Fe Trail, check out our Spring Edition feature below:

Santa Fe Trail was just shy of capturing their third state title in program history last spring, and first since winning them back-to-back in 1995 and 1996, losing to Rossville by just two runs in a 2-0 contest. In 2022 the Chargers edged the Dawgs in the third place game in a 2-1 11-inning marathon.

SFT has back a few pieces from those teams, most notably the 2023 SIK 3A Player of the Year and 2022 3A Pitcher of the Year, Kaelee Washington.

The senior dominates games in more than one way.

“Kaelee is an incredible athlete, and I’ve been blessed to have coached her throughout her high school career,” head coach Brenda Dahl said. “She brings so much to our team. and her talent and skill level don’t come around often. She is such a competitor and whether she’s dominating in the circle, making amazing plays at shortstop or third base, or driving in runs at the plate, she means so much to our team.”

Along with a .530 batting average, 37 runs scored, 44 hits, 29 RBIs, 12 doubles, six triples, and four home runs at the plate, she had a .941 fielding percentage, stole 12 bases on 14 attempts, and on the mound went 14-2 with a 0.81 ERA, eight shutouts, three saves, and a no-hitter.

“We had a great run,” Washington said. “We made it to the state championship game, but we just fell short of the title. Team’s goals this season are to make it back to state for a third year in a row and to compete for the state title.”

While the Chargers are relatively young outside of Washington and fellow senior Hally Smith (C, .242, 15 H, 9 RBI, 15 R) they don’t lack in talent or experience. Juniors Brooke Neidhardt (1B/C, .407, 13 R, 24 H, 18 RBI) and Peyton Ganger (C/OF, .333, 25 R, 26 H, 15 RBI, HR), along with sophomores Gretchen Huizenga (SS/P, .407, 27 R, 35 H, 18 RBI, 9 2B, 2 HR) and Addalyn Sleichter (3B/OF, .430, 13 R, 34 H, 22 RBI, 9 2B, 2 HR) give Dahl a strong core to build around.

“My individual goals for this season are to build on last season and to help continue to build the program for the future,” Washington said.

After her final high school spring season concludes,  Washington, who has spent the summer competing against some of the top teams across the country with her travel team, is planning on continuing her career next year as a Jayhawk on a softball scholarship.

“She has worked so hard to be where she’s at and she deserves every accolade she receives,” Dahl said. “I couldn’t be more proud of the teammate she has become, learning how to lead in even the toughest situations. I couldn’t be happier for her being on the doorstep of her dream of playing DI softball. But, of course, we have some business to attend to here at Santa Fe Trail before she lands at KU!”