AKRON ― The Panthers had to scratch and claw, as expected, but Licking Valley will play for a state softball championship for the first time in 13 years.
After they fell behind Bryan 1-0 in the first inning, sophomore Dani Lambert doubled home the tying run in the fourth and junior D’Neya Dennis singled in the winning run in the seventh, rallying them to a 2-1 victory in the Division IV state semifinals on June 5 at Akron Firestone Stadium.
Second-ranked Valley (27-0) had a pair of double plays to back sophomore Emory Whisner, who struck out 11 and walked one in a four-hitter, and will play a “rubber game” with defending state champion and No. 1 ranked Kenton Ridge (31-0), which edged Mogadore Field 5-3, at 11 a.m. Sunday. The Panthers haven’t lost since falling 11-1 last year to the Cougars in the regional finals, although Valley beat them 6-5 for the 2013 state title.
“They find a way to get it done,” coach Chad Dennis said. “Obviously, their pitcher (North Carolina State-bound Thea Staten) is outstanding, maybe the best we’ve seen. We talk about being present in the moment, reacting to what happens and making some plays. We had some opportunites earlier and didn’t take advantage, but didn’t put our heads down.”
Staten mixed in a devastating changeup with her hard stuff, striking out 12 and walking three in a three-hitter as the Panthers forced her to throw 119 pitches. Whisner who finished with 92 pitches, 63 for strikes, struck out four times but it didn’t affect her.
“Yes, the changeup was really good, as you could tell by my at bats,” said Whisner, who unloaded a long foul ball that would have been a home run. “Obviously, she threw the ball hard and it moved a lot, which made the changeup really good.”
Observed coach Dennis: “I was most proud that she didn’t take it back with her into the circle.”
The Bears, who finished 23-1, took advantage of a first-inning break to score the first run the Panthers have allowed in five postseason games. Staten reached on a two-out dropped throw and Averyann Fisher smacked an RBI double to right center. Then, Whisner buckled down, giving her team a chance.
After leaving runners at second twice, they finally broke through in the fourth. Tori Baughman blooped a leadoff single to left, the first hit off Staten, then took second after a strikeout. With two outs, Lambert doubled off the fence in left to tie it 1-1.
“Being a 3-2 count and us being down a run, I knew I had to get her in,” Lambert said. “I got an inside fastball and was able to turn on it.”
Whisner doubled a runner off second after she caught a popup in the third inning. Then in the sixth, Josey Arnold singled to left, but third baseman Abby Kochur turned Staten’s line drive into a double play.
“It was two high caliber teams going at it, and we want to play the best,” said Bryan coach Hilary Staten. “It was two really amazing pitchers, and a credit to theirs. She threw a really great game. We just could not get that one breakthrough we’ve been able to get all season, no matter where we are in our lineup. Unfortunately, it didn’t happen for us today.”
Sophomore pinch runner Trinity Moorehead stole two bases for Valley, none bigger than in the seventh after Kochur was hit by a pitch with one out. Moorehead took third on a wild pitch, and on a 3-2 pitch, Dennis stroked an RBI single to left.
“In my first three at bats, she (Staten) had been moving the ball in and out,” Dennis said. “I thought I would get something high, and just tried to keep my hands above the ball.”
She thought she hit a riseball, but Thea Staten said it was another changeup.
“My changeup was great all night,” she said. “But she was on the ball the whole game, and was able to get it.”
Coach Dennis said the opportunity was there to steal some bases, although the Panthers didn’t get many runners on.
“Trinity had two really good slides, and their catcher made two really good throws,” he said.
Whisner walked Fisher leading off the seventh, her only one the game, and Karli McDade bunted her to second. But after a visit to the circle to settle her down by coach Dennis, she struck out Reese Ruffer, and pinch hitter Gisele Kidston bunted right back to her for the final out.
Now, the Panthers can focus on a game several had predicted would happen.
“We faced pretty good pitching all season, so going into the tournament, it was one game at a time and we would figure it out,” Whisner said. “Even being down a run today did not scare us.”
With the high expectations, coach Dennis tried to load the schedule with quality opponents.
“We had two eight-inning games in our league against (defending Division II state runnerup) Mount Vernon,” he said. They also beat Division I state runnerup Lancaster and most recently, Danville, which just captured the Division VI state title.
D’Neya said Valley will be ready.
“We’ve been working on hitting off the machine a lot, which should really help on Sunday,” she said. “We have to go in with a clear mind, and treat it like just another game.”
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This article originally appeared on Newark Advocate: Valley softball rallies into Division IV state championship game
Reporting by Dave Weidig, Newark Advocate / Newark Advocate
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
By Dave Weidig, Newark Advocate | USA TODAY Network
