EXTRA INNING BATTLE … Bryan lefty Josey Arnold tries to slap the ball down the third base line. (PHOTO BY RICH HARDING, STAFF)
By: Daniel Cooley
EDGERTON – Through the first nine innings, Bryan and Edgerton were locked in a pitcher’s duel at 1-1, which included stellar defense by both teams.
But then came the 10th inning. Edgerton committed three uncharacteristic errors in the inning, opening the door for four Bryan runs, in a 5-1 win over Edgerton.
The inning began with a one out single, followed by an error. With runners at first and third and one out, Josie Arnold then stepped up to the plate.
“I came to the plate, wanting to make up for my poor at bats the first three times up,” Arnold said. “I had two strikes on me, so I was trying to protect the plate, while also looking for my pitch. I got it, with a pitch that was right down the middle.”
Arnold laced a two run double to deep center field, putting Bryan up, 3-1. Two batters later, two more Bryan runs scored on a throwing error, putting Bryan up. 5-1.
“We had a meltdown in the 10th inning and didn’t make plays and that’s just a part of the game,” said Edgerton coach Marchetta Caryer. “Sometimes things don’t go your way.”
Edgerton pitcher Corrine Cape took the hard luck loss, giving up just two earned runs in 10 innings, surrendering 10 hits, while striking out six and walking just one batter.
The game was scoreless for the first four innings. But Bryan took a 1-0 lead in the fifth inning, on Thea Staten’s RBI single.
“We have a team who believes and once they were able to see the ball better, they were able to get some walks and some hits,” Caryer said.
Edgerton had a great chance to tie the game in the fifth inning, loading the bases on three walks.
But Bryan second baseman Arnold made a good running catch for the third out, on a ball that was headed for the outfield.
Despite the five total walks Staten threw, she also had a no-hitter going for the first 5 2/3 innings, before surrendering a two out single in the sixth inning to Edgerton’s Noelle Ritter.
In the bottom of the seventh, Staten surrendered just her second hit, but it was a home run from Ella Miler, over the center field fence, to tie the game at 1-1.
“After that, I knew I just needed to throw strikes, the defense would have my back and the offense was going to get me some runs,” Staten said.
The Bryan defense did indeed pick up Staten, particularly in the bottom of the 10th inning.
Staten surrendered a leadoff single, but the runner was promptly thrown out at second base, trying to stretch her single into a double. Staten then retired the last two batters on strikeouts.
In 10 innings of work, winning pitcher Staten allowed just one run on three hits, while striking out 16.
She also helped her cause on offense, knocking in one run and scoring the go ahead run in the 10th inning.
“It wasn’t our best performance offensively, but we had the motivation and perseverance to push through,” said Bryan coach Samantha Molina.
BRYAN 000 010 000 4 – 5 10 0
EDGERTON 000 000 100 0 – 1 3 3
Record: Bryan 3-0, Edgerton 1-1
WINNING PITCHER: Staten (10 innings, 1 run, 3 hits, 5 walks, 16 strikeouts)
LOSING PITCHER: Cape (10 innings, 5 runs 2 earned, 10 hits, 6 strikeouts, 1 walk)
LEADING HITTER: (Bryan) Yoder – 2 singles; Staten – 2 singles; Arnold – double, 2 RBIs; Blevins – 2 RBIs; Grothaus – 2 singles; (Edgerton) Miler – home run
Dan can be reached at publisher@thevillagereporter.com