Needing One More Win
Shiner reaches Class 1A state title game with 11-1 victory over Maud
Thursday, May 29, 2008
Coy Slavik - Victoria Advocate Sports Editor
VictoriaAdvocate.com Article | Shiner Lady Comanche Softball | Return to Shiner Home Page
AUSTIN -- When it was needed the most, the Shiner Lady Comanches finally gave coach Brandon Siegel the big inning he had wanted for so long.
Shiner's #6 Lauren Michalec crosses home plate as umpire Rusty Germany calls the game on a 10-run rule. photos by T.C. Baker, Advocate Staff Photographer
The Lady Comanches turned a 2-1 game into a blowout Thursday with an eight-run fourth inning on the way to taking an 11-1 Class 1A semifinal victory over the Maud Lady Cardinals at sun-baked McCombs Field in a contest called in the fifth inning due to the 10-run rule.
"I was worried and I think the girls started to get worried," Siegel said of his team’s shaky one-run lead heading into the bottom of the fourth. "It took us some time to adjust to their slower pitchers. Once we did, we started hitting the ball harder."
The victory sent Shiner (23-6) into Saturday’s 8:30 a.m., Class 1A championship rematch against Bosqueville (25-7), which beat Clyde Eula 5-3 in Thursday’s earlier semifinal. Bosqueville overcame a 1-0 deficit with a sixth-inning grand slam to defeat the Lady Comanches 4-1 in last year’s final.
"We’re excited to play them again," said pitcher Heather Haas, who struck out five and allowed three hits to raise her record to 23-5. "We’re looking for revenge. We’ve just got to go out there and take care of business."
There was a question Thursday of whether or not the Lady Comanches would take care of Maud first.
Shiner's Ieisha Flowers slides in safely at home plate Thursday as the ball gets away from Maud catcher Cara Cloude. The Lady Comanches reached the Class 1A state softball final with an 11-1 win over Maud.
Shiner jumped out to a 2-0 lead with a pair of unearned runs in the first inning. But Maud, making its first state tournament appearance, ended Haas’ bid for her 16th shutout of the season with a run in the fourth.
Shiner had put four runners on base the inning before, but failed to score a run. Siegel feared that his team’s penchant for leaving runners on base was coming back to haunt them at the worst time.
"Coach started getting angry with us," said Shiner right fielder Lauren Michalec, who was 3-for-4 with an RBI and two runs scored. "That’s when we knew we had to get the job done."
The bottom of the lineup got things started for Shiner in the fourth off Maud relief pitcher Amanda Wright. Paige Michalec and Ieisha Flowers drew walks and Holly Haas singled to load the bases. One out later, Lauren Michalec’s single through the left side of the infield scored Paige Michalec.
Flowers slid home safely to make it 4-1 when shortstop Holly Griffin threw wildly to catcher Cara Cloude after fielding Taylor Hajek’s grounder.
"We saw that the top of the order was kind of struggling, so we thought it was our time to step up," said No. 8 hitter Flowers, who combined with No. 7 hitter Paige Michalec and No. 9 hitter Holly Haas to go 4-for-6 with four runs scored. "We wanted to show people that the bottom of our order can come through also."
Shiner's Alyssa Strauss, left, congratulates Taylor Hajek, right, for batting in the winning run. The Lady Comanches took the Maud Lady Cardinals by 10 with the game called at the bottom of the 5th inning as Shiner scored their 11th run.
Shiner added four more runs in the inning after two outs with the aid of another error, a hit batsman and RBI singles from Paige Michalec and Flowers to widen the lead to 10-1.
"It just took us a little while to get in sync," said Hajek, who ended the game in the fifth with an RBI single. "We just had to come together and play."
The Lady Comanches used some aggressive base running and capitalized on two Maud errors to take a 2-0 lead after one inning.
Alyssa Strauss led off with a walk and advanced to second base on a passed ball. Lauren Michalec followed with an opposite-field liner that was dropped by right fielder Brianna Wommack. Strauss scored on the error and Michalec made it to second base.
Still with no outs, Michalec took third base on a delayed steal and raced home on the play after pitcher Kara Sutton’s throw to third got past Amy Sornsby.
Sutton (18-5) limited Shiner to one hit over the first two innings before she was hit by a Heather Haas pitch in the third and had to leave the game. After the game, Maud coach Jeff Callahan said Sutton suffered a broken bone in her left arm on the pitch.
The Lady Cardinals didn’t get a hit until the fourth when Ashley Foster’s soft liner fell in front of second baseman Strauss for an infield single. Taylor Montgomery followed with a shot down the right-field line that moved Foster to third.
Shiner third baseman Paige Michalec comes up throwing in the fifth inning Thursday during the Lady Comanches’ Class 1A state semifinal game against Maud.
But Paige Jordan’s bunt attempt was caught in the air by third baseman Shimek, who threw to Hajek at first base to double up Montgomery.
Cloude then hit a dribbler near the first-base line that Heather Haas bobbled to allow Foster to score.
But the Shiner pitcher insisted she was not fazed by the error or her team’s slim 2-1 lead.
"I knew from experience not to get rattled," she said. "I had to keep my composure and pitch my game."
Siegel said the Lady Comanches will practice early today in Shiner before returning to Austin for Saturday’s title game. He admitted he was worried that his team would be looking forward to Saturday’s game before taking care of Thursday’s business.
"I couldn’t get a good read on the girls today," he said. "They seemed confident. They may have looked past Maud somewhat. All year long, they’ve been looking forward to playing Bosqueville."
Game summary Game of May 30, 2008 Class 1A SemiFinal Game at UT Austin Score by Innings R H E -------------------------------------- Maud HS............. 000 10 - 1 3 4 Shiner HS........... 200 81 - 11 7 2 -------------------------------------- Kara Sutton, Amanda Wright (3) and Cara Cloude. Heather Haas and Holly Haas. W: Haas 23-5. L: Sutton 18-5. Highlights: (M) Taylor Montgomery 1-for-2; Ashley Foster 1-for-1, run; Wright 1-for-2. (S) Heather Haas 3-hitter, 5 strikeouts; Lauren Michalec 3-for-4, 2 runs; Ieisha Flowers 2-for-2, 2 RBIs, run; Morgan Ullman 2 RBIs, run; Paige Michalec 1-for-2, 2 runs, RBI; Taylor Hajek 1-for-3, 2 RBIs, run. Records: Maud 25-11, Shiner 23-6. Note: Shiner advances to Saturday’s 8:30 a.m. state championship game against Bosqueville.
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