Peaster upsets Howe in one-game playoff; freak play kills comeback

A one game series never plays in the favor of the better team A coin-toss played much in the Lady Bulldogs now sitting at home while Peaster lives to play another day However, the Lady Bulldogs bare a little responsibility, themselves But perhaps, the game will always be remembered for the freak play in the top of the fourth that completely changed the momentum and perhaps the game Howe trailing, 3-0 with the bases loaded, two outs and Torrey Stubblefield at the plate, saw her rip a line drive towards the left centerfield gap that was going to score one, if not two runs

However, the ball was hit right at Kayla Anderson who was leading off second base Anderson froze and the ball glanced off of her batting helmet which caused her to be out That ended the inning, momentum and virtually the season It was a freak play that one will probably never see again Howe set the tone in the first inning and the first batter of the game The visiting Lady Bulldogs leadoff hitter Erin Blackburn slashed a line drive double to left field, however, she blew through the stop sign at second and was out at third base to start the game Streetman grounded out to second, which would have moved Blackburn to third with one out

Madisyn Hargrove would then pop up to second for the third and final out in the first

Stubblefield, who has been battling injuries for most of the season was in the circle for only the second time this year The dominating hard-throwing sophomore was on her game early by allowing only one runner on base in the first (on an error)

Peaster's Melton struckout the side in the bottom of the second But Stubblefield matched her toe-to-toe with a 1-2-3 bottom of the second

Howe was threatening in the top of the third when Dani Ross doubled to left, but Melton got Blackburn to fly out to left to end the inning

All of the scoring in the game took place in the bottom of the third inning Stubblefied actually had two outs through the first three batters, however, a Ruddy single broke the scoreless game when Tatum would score Another RBI single by McKinzie scored Chapman Ruddy would score on the throw to make it 3-0 Peaster headed to the fateful top of the fourth

Peyton Streetman led off the inning with a strikeout Hargrove singled, Anderson singled to right and

Payton Griffin struckout swinging. Emily Sanders singled to left to load the bases Coach Banker opted to hold Hargrove at third in order to make sure Stubblefield had a chance to swing the bat with runners on base Banker got the hit he wanted, but fate had other ideas as everything stopped when the ball hit Anderson

Stubblefield would give up a single and walk in the bottom of the fourth and showed signs up uncomfortableness with her hip, but no runs scored Ross, Hunter Brockelman, and Blackburn went down 1-2-3 in the top of the 5th

In the bottom of the 5th, Stubblefield was replaced in the circle by Hargrove who gave up a single but got a strikeout, popup and a groundout to end the inning

Howe had a chance to score in the top of the sixth when Anderson singled and Giffin walked, however, Melton was able to strikeout Sanders to end the threat

Hargrove gave up a single and a walk in the bottom of the sixth, but no runs scored setting up a needed three-run rally by the Lady Bulldogs in the final frame Stubblefield led off the inning by reaching on an error and was able to go to second on the bad throw But that was the only threat as Ross flied to center, Maddie Mullens, hitting for Brockelman, struckout swinging and Blackburn lined out hard to the shortstop

The Lady Bulldogs finished as area champions, just shy of last year's finish But the bright news is that everyone is coming back except for one player - senior London Loftice

"In 16 years, I've never seen a game decided by a ball hitting a continued on page 5

Whiskey continued from page 1 economy." said Monte Walker, Director of Economic Development "The dollar impact for Howe would have been far reaching."

Belfour Spirits will make vodka onsite as wel as craft whiskey and bourbon and various kinds of gin

At some point, Belfour and his father will make rum and possibly tequila All sorts of cocktails will also be served at the location in Little Elm

Belfour currently lives on a ranch in Whitewright, but said he plans to move to Little Elm to be closer to the business A couple of years ago, he and his father first came up with the idea one night while sipping whiskey together and realized that they could start a business and hang out drinking together Since then, they have been researching the process of owning and operating the unique business

"I arrived to the office one morning with a phone message from Dayn Belfour wanting to meet about this possibility" said Walker "About a week later, we were locating property and trying to find the ideal location for his business "

They had discussed the vacant property that sits between Abby's Restaurant and City Hall Belfour said the property was ideal and that their discussions included reconstructing a two-story historiclooking building similar to the one that stood in its place several years ago

“We want to make it accommodating for everyone,” Belfour told the Little Elm Journal about his new location “It’s going to be very majestic, unique and a central hub for fun I want a group loud and have too much fun here ”

The Little Elm destination will be a detailed design featuring a rustic looking two-story building with a glass wall to view the alcohol manufacturing, a stage to host small concerts and a large courtyard area perfect for weddings and events

"I'm just disappointed it didn't work out for Howe " said Howe City Administrator Joe Shephard

Walker and Belfour discussed the downtown location being close to the First Baptist Church and that could have weighed the decision to not be in Howe

"Dayn Belfour is a sincere and pleasant individual who really wanted to make sure the business was in a place that wouldn't be disruptive to the community." said Walker

No other discussions are taking place with other distilleries.