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DALTON — Within a second or two of ball hitting bat, they knew.
Elise Strahan's walk-off, three-run homer hit like thunder, clearing the center-field wall in the blink of an eye to give Perry a 6-4 Division IV regional semifinal win over Field.
Senior Tia Ulrich, who made so many Gold Glove-caliber plays at shortstop to keep the Falcons (22-8) in the game, dropped to the infield dirt in an instant.
Three outs from the regional finals, Field's season came to a jarring end on three great at-bats from Perry, as Sophie Sivon lashed a leadoff single, Madeline Infalvi worked a seven-pitch walk and Strahan ended her six-pitch at-bat with the game-winning homer.
"I think it was more of the, 'Wow, we were right there this whole game,' and it was a one-run game basically the whole game, two-run game, and I think it was just the feeling of going in from the dugout and being so excited, like just three outs away, and then having that happen," Ulrich said. "Obviously, starting on varsity as a freshman for four years, this was my last chance, along with three other players, and I just found that, like, 'Oh, it's over now.'"
As Ulrich noted, it's the end of an era for the Falcons, who started eight seniors against the Pirates, including four four-year starters.
Their legacy is immense.
They left a legacy of winning, racking up three league titles and two district championships in the last four years.
They left a legacy of battling, topping West Branch in a May 24 district final they didn't lead until the end — rallying from a 4-2 deficit in the seventh, capped by Lilli Sutkowy's walk-off single — and then nearly pulling off another comeback May 28 at Harold J. Wenger Field.
"I told them at the end, I said, when you look back on it, what a hell of a ride," Field coach Beth Dyer said. "You've got three league championships, two district titles. You competed in a district championship the two other years. I feel like they left their mark and they set a new standard and expectation. I couldn't be prouder of them."
The Pirates punched first, as Arianna Rogers, Rosalyn Tharp, Morgan Winters and Sydney Collins had four straight two-out singles in the bottom of the first to take a 2-0 lead. They punched last as well with Strahan's game-winning homer.
In between, the Falcons did what they do best — fight.
The same team that battled back from a pair of two-run deficits against West Branch worked its way back into the game, and even the lead, against Perry. And the same hitter who delivered the winner against the Warriors came up clutch against the Pirates: Sutkowy.
After a deflating first in which Field went down 1-2-3 and Perry strung together four straight two-out hits, Sutkowy turned the tide with a double to start the second. Senior Delilah Rahe followed with a well-placed bunt that she beat out and Ulrich plated Sutkowy with an RBI groundout.
Down 3-1 in the sixth, Sutkowy and the Falcons struck again as Abby Harlin singled up the middle and Sutkowy delivered a staggering opposite-field blast to tie the score.
"Lilli's, no doubt, a fantastic hitter, if not the best hitter around, and she came up big for us today," Dyer said. "You're pretty happy to see Lilli come to the plate in those situations."
Under a gentle yet unrelenting rain, Field thus offered a glimpse of the future amidst the end of an era. That future shone bright in Sutkowy and catcher Averi Weis, another junior who gunned down a runner at second to end the second.
And yet the end of an era was impossible to ignore as an irreplaceable Class of 2025 went to work one last time. Senior ace Maddie Burge battled back from that tough first to hold Perry scoreless in four of five innings before Strahan went yard in the seventh.
Burge was backed by stellar defense, including Ulrich turning a soft flare into a challenging 6-4-3 double play, as fellow senior Mckayla Miller made the turn and yet another senior, Olivia Dyer, made the catch at first.
Field's stellar senior class almost extended its season.
Tied at three, Miller sent the first pitch of the seventh inning up the middle, Dyer sacrificed her to second, fellow senior Jessica Pollard ripped a single up the middle to put runners on the corners and Burge hit a sacrifice fly to bring Miller home.
Those seniors brought the Falcons within three outs of a regional final.
They brought endless trophies down State Route 43.
How do these seniors want to be remembered?
"The love that we shared as a team, being so close with all these girls," Ulrich said. "I've played with all of them since I was 10 years old, travel ball, and there was such a momentum boost when we were coming into high school, making varsity and then being on a team that went to a regional semifinal my freshman year. We just want to leave the happiness, the love of the team, and obviously we want to win every game, but it takes love to win a game."
This article originally appeared on Record-Courier: End of an era as Field softball falls in regional semis to Perry
Continue reading...
Elise Strahan's walk-off, three-run homer hit like thunder, clearing the center-field wall in the blink of an eye to give Perry a 6-4 Division IV regional semifinal win over Field.
Senior Tia Ulrich, who made so many Gold Glove-caliber plays at shortstop to keep the Falcons (22-8) in the game, dropped to the infield dirt in an instant.
Three outs from the regional finals, Field's season came to a jarring end on three great at-bats from Perry, as Sophie Sivon lashed a leadoff single, Madeline Infalvi worked a seven-pitch walk and Strahan ended her six-pitch at-bat with the game-winning homer.
"I think it was more of the, 'Wow, we were right there this whole game,' and it was a one-run game basically the whole game, two-run game, and I think it was just the feeling of going in from the dugout and being so excited, like just three outs away, and then having that happen," Ulrich said. "Obviously, starting on varsity as a freshman for four years, this was my last chance, along with three other players, and I just found that, like, 'Oh, it's over now.'"
As Ulrich noted, it's the end of an era for the Falcons, who started eight seniors against the Pirates, including four four-year starters.
Their legacy is immense.
They left a legacy of winning, racking up three league titles and two district championships in the last four years.
They left a legacy of battling, topping West Branch in a May 24 district final they didn't lead until the end — rallying from a 4-2 deficit in the seventh, capped by Lilli Sutkowy's walk-off single — and then nearly pulling off another comeback May 28 at Harold J. Wenger Field.
"I told them at the end, I said, when you look back on it, what a hell of a ride," Field coach Beth Dyer said. "You've got three league championships, two district titles. You competed in a district championship the two other years. I feel like they left their mark and they set a new standard and expectation. I couldn't be prouder of them."
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Field responds, rallies against Perry
The Pirates punched first, as Arianna Rogers, Rosalyn Tharp, Morgan Winters and Sydney Collins had four straight two-out singles in the bottom of the first to take a 2-0 lead. They punched last as well with Strahan's game-winning homer.
In between, the Falcons did what they do best — fight.
The same team that battled back from a pair of two-run deficits against West Branch worked its way back into the game, and even the lead, against Perry. And the same hitter who delivered the winner against the Warriors came up clutch against the Pirates: Sutkowy.
After a deflating first in which Field went down 1-2-3 and Perry strung together four straight two-out hits, Sutkowy turned the tide with a double to start the second. Senior Delilah Rahe followed with a well-placed bunt that she beat out and Ulrich plated Sutkowy with an RBI groundout.
Down 3-1 in the sixth, Sutkowy and the Falcons struck again as Abby Harlin singled up the middle and Sutkowy delivered a staggering opposite-field blast to tie the score.
"Lilli's, no doubt, a fantastic hitter, if not the best hitter around, and she came up big for us today," Dyer said. "You're pretty happy to see Lilli come to the plate in those situations."
Under a gentle yet unrelenting rain, Field thus offered a glimpse of the future amidst the end of an era. That future shone bright in Sutkowy and catcher Averi Weis, another junior who gunned down a runner at second to end the second.
And yet the end of an era was impossible to ignore as an irreplaceable Class of 2025 went to work one last time. Senior ace Maddie Burge battled back from that tough first to hold Perry scoreless in four of five innings before Strahan went yard in the seventh.
Burge was backed by stellar defense, including Ulrich turning a soft flare into a challenging 6-4-3 double play, as fellow senior Mckayla Miller made the turn and yet another senior, Olivia Dyer, made the catch at first.
Field's stellar senior class almost extended its season.
Tied at three, Miller sent the first pitch of the seventh inning up the middle, Dyer sacrificed her to second, fellow senior Jessica Pollard ripped a single up the middle to put runners on the corners and Burge hit a sacrifice fly to bring Miller home.
Those seniors brought the Falcons within three outs of a regional final.
They brought endless trophies down State Route 43.
How do these seniors want to be remembered?
"The love that we shared as a team, being so close with all these girls," Ulrich said. "I've played with all of them since I was 10 years old, travel ball, and there was such a momentum boost when we were coming into high school, making varsity and then being on a team that went to a regional semifinal my freshman year. We just want to leave the happiness, the love of the team, and obviously we want to win every game, but it takes love to win a game."
This article originally appeared on Record-Courier: End of an era as Field softball falls in regional semis to Perry
Continue reading...
