Cardinals fly by the Pirates thanks to four-run third inning
WIAA DIV. 5 SOFTBALL
Thorp’s one scoring inning was bigger than Gilman’s and that was the difference in a well-pitched WIAA Division 5 softball regional final that ended 4-1 in the Cardinals’ favor on June 16.
Thorp (14-10) got all of its runs in the bottom of the third inning, survived Gilman rallies in the fifth and sixth and advanced to a sectional semifinal Monday at top-seeded McDonell Central, which it lost 12-3.
The game’s starting pitchers, Trysta Leech for Thorp and Addy Warner for Gilman, combined for 25 strikeouts and just one walk. There were only 10 hits combined in the seven innings.
“Both pitchers threw well,” Gilman head coach Brian Phelps said. “It was the best I’ve seen their pitcher throw.”
Thorp’s big rally started with an error on a bunt. After a strikeout, the first run scored on a fielder’s choice. Thorp turned two more successful bunts and then a key two-out error into three more runs that put the Pirates in a hole they couldn’t dig out of.
“That inning was kind of the story of our season in a lot of ways,” Phelps said. “We just didn’t make the plays when we needed to.”
Not that the Pirates didn’t try to dig out of that 4-0 hole. Right away in the first inning they had a chance when Tychelle Duellman singled on the infield and was bunted to second by Gracie Tallier. But Leech came up big, striking out two of Gilman’s best hitters, Madisyn James and Warner, to end the inning.
In the top of the fifth, Gilman’s Bryn Hendricks singled and moved to second on a bunt by Tatum Weir. Ava Warner singled to move Hendricks to third and Warner stole second to put two runners in scoring position. Duellman hit a shot down the leftfield line that would’ve scored both, but it was ruled foul, a call the Pirates disagreed with but couldn’t convince the umpires otherwise. The Cardinals got Hendricks at the plate on a fielder’s choice and kept Gilman’s zero on the scoreboard.
“That was kind of a big play in the game right there,” Phelps said of the foul-ball call. “That was two runs and we would’ve had Tychelle at second with Gracie, Madisyn and Addy coming up. I liked those odds. It just didn’t happen.”
The Pirates got on the board in the sixth when James singled, stole second and scored on Addy Warner’s double to center.
Addy Warner struck out 12 hitters and didn’t walk any. Leech struck out 13 and issued the game’s only walk.
Warner is the only senior the Pirates lose to graduation. The rest of team, which has a handful of juniors and sophomores, but also played several freshmen, took steps they hope to carry over the summer and into the spring of 2022.
“We’re not the only one in the boat this year that just had incredibly young teams on the field this season,” Phelps said. “Losing that year of experience (in 2020) really catches up with you. But we tip our hats. (Thorp head coach) Kurt Rhyner had them ready and they came out in that third inning and did what they needed to do.
“I’m proud of the way the girls did this year, how they came along and how far they’ve come,” he added. “Obviously it helped having Addy in the circle. She was a great leader. There were a couple of times where she really could’ve gotten frustrated but she stayed calm. For now it’s back to the drawing board and start working for next year.”
