Emalyn Johnson put Covington on the board in the first inning with the first of her two solo home runs. (Press Pros Feature Photos by Julie Wright-Daniel)
The Buccaneers carry a simple goal with them: make it back to state and do more in Akron than they did last year. Thursday they took the first big step.
Anna, OH – The Covington softball team is medal hungry.
The Buccaneers earned Division VII district gold for the second straight season Thursday with a nail-biting 6-5 victory over Russia on the strength of three home runs and gold-glove defense. Next week they go for a second straight set of regional medals and a return to the state semifinals in Akron.
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But the gold that eluded them last year – the medals that say state champions – are the precious medals they covet. They aren’t reticent to remind each other of their ultimate goal.
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After receiving their medals Thursday, the team gathered around coach Brooke Gostomsky-Menker. Her message: “Four more.”
And the team repeated: “Four more.”
“That’s something we did last year when we got down to four,” said junior catcher Emalyn Johnson. “It tells us how close we are to doing it, and that we’re not far at all.”
Covington (24-6) will meet a yet-to-be-determined opponent from the Northwest District in a regional semifinal at 5 p.m. Wednesday at Wapakoneta High School. To get there, the Buccs held off a Russia rally in the bottom of the seventh inning.
“They fought through adversity and fought through pressure, and I think it’s good for them to see a little bit of pressure because we’re going to see it the rest of the season,” Gostomsky-Menker said.
Russia coach Wes Goubeaux knew his team would have to hit to keep pace with a team averaging 14 runs. When the teams met in the regular season, Russia (14-12) jumped to a 9-3 lead, but it wasn’t enough. Covington rallied to win 12-9.
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“We knew going in we were going to have to hit with them, and we got off to a slow start,” Goubeaux said. “But the girls stayed focused and kept at it.”
Russia trailed 5-0 when it pieced together a three-run fifth started by Therese Gibson’s leadoff homer. Momentum shifted, but Covington felt some level of safety with a 6-3 lead in the seventh.
Covington pitcher Whitney Burns trusted her defense, allowed nine hits and struck out three.
Russia’s final at-bat began harmlessly with a groundout, but that took Russia to the top of its lineup and Raiders brought the pressure of the moment to the Buccs. Whitney Burns walked Aryanna Cordonnier to open the door. And Madi Hoehne launched a two-run homer to right to slice Covington’s lead to one.
After Ava Gibson doubled to the fence in right center, the Russia fans screamed and the Raiders pumped adrenaline. Covington, the quietest it had been since the first pitch, took deep breaths. Fortunately for the Buccs, Burns never lost confidence in herself, her catcher or the seven behind her.
“I was a little bit nervous,” she said. “But you put your trust in God, you put your trust in defense, and things will happen the way that they’re supposed to happen.”
Speaking of nerves: “For me, probably all over the place,” Gostomsky-Menker said. “But those girls they showed poise. I couldn’t tell it on a single one of their faces that they were nervous in that situation, and they were built for that situation.”
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Still, some of the Buccs might have gasped when Finley Magato sent a low-hanging fly ball into right-center that, if it had found the grass, would have scored Gibson with the tying run. Instead, center fielder Karlee Schwartz swooped in and made the catch as she fell to her knees. Courtesy runner Gemma Schultz tagged up and advanced to third.
“She risked her body for the team, which shows that she was willing to go all out for our team and put her heart into the team,” Burns said. “I trusted in her that she’s going to catch it, because she’s done it before.”
Covington center fielder Karlee Schwartz robs Russia’s Finley Magato of a hit that would have tied the score in the seventh inning.
Burns, who struck out only three, had to get one more out and relied on her defense. A ground ball bounced toward third baseman Jayda McClure. She gloved it and threw a strike to first for the final out, capping an errorless day by the infield.
“I love catching her – we’re best friends,” Johnson said of Burns. “And she just trusts her defense. She’s not a selfish player, and that’s what makes her such a great player.”
Burns usually has more of a lead to work with. But after building a 4-0 lead through two innings, Russia pitcher Ava Gibson got stingy. However, the early damage was game-changing.
Johnson hit her 18th home run – a line-drive no-doubter through the wind and over the 210 sign in left-center – with two outs and the bases empty in the first inning.
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Then the Buccs, who collected 12 hits, played their style in the second to load the bases on a line-drive single by Cassidy Iddings, a bunt single by Emma Ouellette and a ground ball to second by Burns that moved the runners to second and third.
“We never really look for the home runs,” Gostomsky-Menker said. “We always look for just base hits, line drives, and the home runs come if we get them.”
Boom. They got one. Kylie Palsgrove lifted a high home run, her ninth this season, through the swirling winds to left-center for a sudden 4-0 lead.
Kylie Palsgrove’s three-run homer in the second inning gave Covington a 4-0 lead.
“Kylie’s a great hitter,” Johnson said. “I’m just glad that she can have confidence in the box and not put too much pressure on herself in those situations.”
Ouellette doubled in a run in the fifth for a 5-0 lead. Johnson made it a two-homer day with No. 19 for a 6-3 lead in the sixth.
“I’m just trying to hit line drives, but I’m glad that I could just hit good for the team,” Johnson said. “Everyone hit good, which was a whole team effort. I’m glad when the at-bats I didn’t have good hits that my team backed me up.”
The pressure of this game, as Gostomsky-Menker said, could serve the Buccs well, keep them focused, and guarded against complacency.
But what about pressure to do more than just make it to state, a stage Covington has stood on five times since 2002 without any wins?
“Maybe a little bit, but not a crazy amount,” Johnson said of feeling pressure to win. “I don’t think we put too much pressure on ourselves. I think that we just try to trust God’s plan. And we trust each other, and we know how good we can be, and I think that just brings us comfort, knowing that we can play to the best of our ability.”
And next Wednesday’s goal is to finish by saying, “Three more.”
You know what comes next. But one game at a time.
Therese Gibson steps on home plate and is joined by teammates after she hit a solo home run to right field.
Other district finals
Division II: A six-run fourth, sparked by Alexis Ater’s three-run homer, carried Troy to a 10-2 victory over Cincinnati St. Ursula at Centerville.
The Trojans (26-3) face the winner of Friday’s district final between Northmont and Harrison in the regional semifinals at 5 p.m. Wednesday at Mason.
Division III: Ella Oswalt pitched a five-inning no-hitter as top-seeded Greenville continued its dominant play with an 11-0 victory over No. 8 Sidney at National Trail. Lizzie Shaffer’s two hits and four RBIs led the Lady Wave offense.
The Lady Wave (28-1) will play in the regional semifinals at Newton at 5 p.m. Wednesday against Tippecanoe, a 5-0 winner over Goshen at Hamilton. Jania Drum pitched a three-hitter, and Jocelyn Shelton had three hits and two RBIs to lead the Red Devils (18-12).
In the other final, Western Brown defeated Piqua 12-0.
Division V: Jorgia Roeth’s two-run single in the top of the seventh lifted Miami East to a 4-3 victory over Georgetown in Batavia. The Vikings (23-5) will face the winner of Friday’s district final between Springfield Shawnee and Reading at 5 p.m. Wednesday at Miami University.
In the completion of a semifinal suspended by rain, Arcanum defeated Anna 4-2. The Trojans meet Williamsburg in the final at noon Friday at Valley View.
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