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With Indiana Northern State Conference foes Tippecanoe Valley and John Glenn having already met twice this season, splitting the first two matchups, Tuesday night’s 3A softball regional game served as a perfect rubber match for the two teams. Both pitchers were outstanding, giving up a combined seven hits while striking out 19. Only one run was scored, and it belonged to the Lady Falcons, who advanced to the first semi-state in school history with a 1-0 victory.
Dalynne Bussard was able to work around a leadoff single by Mia Wilton in the top of the first inning, striking out two of the next three hitters she saw to put up a goose egg against the top of the Glenn lineup. Freshman hurler Emma Thomas was even more efficient in the bottom half, retiring the side in order to quickly send the game into the second.
Bussard, Valley’s all-time leader in strikeouts, added three more to her total in the top of the second, all of them looking. The Lady Falcon offense had no answers for the senior just yet, as the spin she was getting on her pitches was enough to fool each hitter that took to the box here.
The Lady Viking offense had a prime opportunity to take the first lead of the game its next time up. Kaitlyn Threlkel and Malaynie Costello jumped on Thomas early, each singling on the first pitch of their respective at bats. A sacrifice bunt by Temperance Caudill put the pair in scoring position with just one out, but that’s as far as they’d get. Thomas went on to pick up a strikeout and a pop up to the catcher to retire the side, end the threat and keep the game scoreless.
Glenn had an equally massive opportunity in the top of the third, as Thomas led the inning off with a single before stealing second to put her in scoring position with nobody out. A second base hit put two on with just one out, but as was the case for the home side during their last trip, the visitors were not able to capitalize. A lineout to KC Shriver at short ended the threat, giving Valley another opportunity to strike first.
It wouldn’t happen during the team’s next trip to the plate though, as the pitcher’s duel continued through three innings. A two-out error allowed Shriver to take first, but that was the extent of that rally. Nearly midway through the game, it was starting to look as if the first team to score might be the one to pull it off.
Senior Gaby Gonzalez keeps Valley's hopes alive with a single in the bottom of the seventh inning...Nieter
Bussard was continuing to do everything possible to ensure that it wasn’t the Lady Falcons that were able to break through. She struck out the side for the second time in the top of the fourth, this time with all three batters swinging. Now with nine, she was just one away from her third game with double digit punchouts in four postseason appearances .
Despite Threlkel leading off the bottom of the fourth with her second knock of the game, the Lady Viking offense was unable to do anything with it. Thomas was able to generate a weak fly out to short before picking up a pair of punchouts to strand the Valley catcher at first and send things to the fifth still deadlocked at 0-0.
Bussard’s second straight 1-2-3 inning included two more Ks to give her eleven for the evening. Thomas retired the side in order for the first time since the first in the bottom half of the inning, increasing the tension even further. With both pitchers throwing extremely well, it was seeming more and more like just one mistake could be enough to end a season.
Wilton’s third hit of the day, a line drive up the middle, began the sixth inning. Before the following at bat by Sophia Lizzi concluded, a pair of extremely costly passed balls allowed Wilton to reach third with nobody out. That brought up top Glenn hitter Payton Thomas, who had been held in check to this point. She wasted no time, drilling the first pitch she saw to the left field wall, where it was caught. However, it was more than deep enough to bring Wilton home from third, and just like that, the Lady Falcons led 1-0 on the sacrifice fly.
All of a sudden, Valley now had just six outs left in its season unless the team was able to plate a run. A one-out single by Kahlyn Manns was the only offense the home team could muster up in the bottom of the sixth, as a pair of flyouts to left ended the frame and sent the two sides to the all-important seventh inning.
Bussard did her job in the top half, retiring the side in order for the fourth time in the game, picking up her 14th strikeout of the evening in the process. Now, it was the bats turn to have her back. A two-out single by Gaby Gonzalez gave Makenzey Morton a chance to send it back to the top of the order, but a nasty rise ball from Thomas for her fifth punchout of the game wrapped things up and sent the Lady Falcons to the semi-state.
