The two best high school softball teams in South Dakota squared off Monday night in a rematch of last year?s state championship, and the game came down to one pitch.
For the first time this season, in front of a packed stadium at Parkview, Central took the field against Stevens. Summer teammates became high school rivals, and two of the best pitchers in the state took the mound.
?We were definitely anxious, excited to play.? Stevens? second baseman Abby Walz told me after the game. ?It hurt last year when we lost to Central in the state championship. It definitely lit a fire under us. It felt good to get back out there and go again.?
Stevens scrounged a first inning run out of an error, a base on balls, and an infield single, but the lead was short lived. Central stormed back on RBI singles by Taylor Bauer and Jo Jo Shriver to take a 2-1 lead. The damage might have been greater, but Stevens? catcher Erica Everson gunned Bauer out trying to go from first to third on Shriver?s hit.
Central scored twice more in the bottom of the second inning, on a walk, singles from Lexyjo Deneke and Caitlyn Shoulder, and a two-run Stevens error.
The score after two was Central 4-Stevens 1, and all the momentum was with the Cobblers. Bretton Lien was throwing hard, changing speeds, and hitting her spots. Stevens hitters looked tentative and nervous at the plate.
?We had a game plan to look for the pitch that each girl hits well, and to swing at those pitches.? Stevens Coach Eva Burley explained after the game. ?But I think that at the beginning of the game we were so anxious and excited to hit that we didn?t step to the plate with calm heads ready to hit. I told the girls ?It?s going to come down to mental preparation and emotion.? In the beginning their hearts were racing. I kept telling them to slow down, try to slow their heart rates down.?
In the third inning, the game turned on a dime. Burley made adjustments, and the Stevens bats came alive.
Lexi Marsico lined a single to right, Melissa Nieland singled over the shortstop?s head, and Kalie Maiden walked. Stevens pitcher, Brittany Geerson, came to the plate with the bases loaded and promptly drove Lien?s pitch over the centerfield fence for a grand slam.
?It was full ball on the plate,? Geerson explained. ?It had a little spin. She wouldn?t be throwing fastballs. I just turned on it and took it.?
In the blink of a pitch that missed its spot by an inch, the bleachers went wild, and Stevens went from down 4-1 to up 5-4.
The momentum swing also gave Geerson new confidence on the mound.
?The first two innings I was kind of nervous, but then my pitching coach told me ?Don?t pitch around them. Go after them.? After the second inning I just went after them, and it worked.?
Central tried to rally in the third, but Geerson got a little extra help from second baseman Abby Walz, who turned in two sparkling defensive gems to stifle Central?s hopes of a comeback.
For the last two innings, both pitchers got stronger, and neither team could mount any offense. Geerson worked out of trouble in the fourth. Lien worked out of trouble in the fifth. Both pitchers threw better at the end of the game than they had at the beginning.
The first cross town showdown of the season ended 5-4 in Stevens favor, but Central coach Matt Brandhagen was philosophical about the loss.
?It was a great game. I just hate to see it decided on one pitch. But we?re getting there. We aren?t there yet, but we?re getting there. We?re hitting better. We?re playing defense better. We just have to execute better on a couple of different things. You could tell we?ve been working for two weeks going opposite field. We have to put every pitch where it?s suppose to go. And on defense, we?ve got a whole new infield. Maddie Merriam is the only girl left from last year. So we?re learning to work together. I?m not worried about this game. I just want us to keep getting better. I want us to be ready when the state tournament comes October 1.?
Central and Stevens play four more times this month. It?s hard to imagine that the upcoming games will be better than Monday night?s game.
Source: http://insidedakotasports.com/geersons-grand-slam-revives-raiders
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