Parkway’s Abi George slides home in time for an early 2-0 lead in a 14U game Saturday at the Minster Classic. (Press Pros Feature Photos by Jeff Gilbert)
Versailles and Parkway’s 14U softball teams looked every bit prepared to move on to high school softball in a thrilling 5-4 Versailles victory in extra innings. Both pitchers notched double-digit strikeouts, the infields played clean, and both teams stepped up in the clutch.
Minster, OH – Bottom of the seventh, no outs, tied at four, and Parkway’s winning run at second base. Versailles pitcher Landree McDaniel had been dealing for six innings, but two walks and a double into the seventh – her confidence was gone.
“I thought we were going to lose,” McDaniel said. “I was scared in the seventh inning.”
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The brief rain followed by intense sun brought pressure-cooker conditions – mirroring McDaniel’s mindset with her team’s perfect pool-play record on the line.
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She cut down the next batter on strikes. Then a groundout moved the runner to third. With belief creeping back into her mind, she tossed her 10th strikeout to escape to extra innings. Her 11th strikeout ended the game in the eighth inning – 5-4 Versailles.
“I was just throwing really hard,” McDaniel said of her late-game strategy.
Those are the games and the moments that forge champions. This time, she didn’t believe. Neither did infielder Leah Bergman by her own confession. But what will they believe next time? And if this is how they perform when they’re doubting themselves, what can they do once their confidence blooms?
You can’t hang around MAC sports long without hearing the adage “iron sharpens iron.” But it’s repeated because it’s true. Parkway pitcher Kendall Rasberry left McDaniel a slim margin of error by tallying double-digit strikeouts of her own. She also pitched six innings of two-run softball before allowing a pair in the seventh that cranked up the pressure.
Pitchers’ duel … Above, Parkway’s Kendall Rasberry and Versailles’ Landree McDaniel each threw double-digit strikeouts and gave their teams a chance in extra innings.
Playing youth softball against future MAC and SCAL opponents is like swinging the bat with a doughnut on in the on-deck circle. You have to work so hard to compete that once you get to the high school level and start playing teams from outside the area, it’s like swinging the bat with the doughnut off – a breeze. That’s the story that the high school tournament results tell.
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McDaniel said she’s been working on her changeup to diversify her repertoire before she plays in high school. She struck out three Panthers looking with her changeup.
And more than just the two ace pitchers rose to meet the moment. Versailles catcher Elise Stammen played an elite game defensively and led off the top of the seventh with a hit that would eventually become a go-ahead run. Anna Steinbrunner added a hit before Bergman crushed a ball to center field to score them both.
Mia Miller tags out a would-be base thief. Meadow Hays delivered the throw from home plate.
“That was really fun,” Bergman said. “My only thought was, ‘Don’t miss,’ and that I wanted a pitch a little low.”
She flexed her power when it mattered most, but Bergman said she wants to work on hitting for contact in the coming year.
Parkway’s offense answered in the bottom of the seventh. Abi George took McDaniel to the wall to drive in a pair. But McDaniel’s resurgence and Mallory Schmitmeyer’s alert baserunning in extra innings won the day for the Lady Tigers.
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McDaniel and Bergman each enter eighth grade this fall, so they could still have one more Minster Classic’s worth of development before high school. But if McDaniel continues her trend of 13 strikeouts on Friday and 11 Saturday, they may not have to wait a year to haul home some hardware.
Versailles third baseman Emerson Shardo elevates to deny Parkway a base hit.
When the pitchers couldn’t retire batters on strikes, both defensive infields played so effectively that the dirt was essentially closed for business. You don’t see that in 14U softball everywhere you look. But iron has been sharpening iron for a while by the time these girls are playing 14U. Bergman said she’s been playing on the team for four or five years, and most of the team has played together at least that long, and longer in many cases.
The Minster Classic does well to emphasize that winning and losing matter. Without that, why bother to get better?
The Panthers lost their three pool play games by a total of five runs. In some places, close enough would be good enough. But in MAC country it means the Tigers returned Sunday to play in the knockout stage, while Parkway only attended as spectators.
But if the goal is long-term improvement, and building team chemistry and camaraderie to boost performance at the high school level, I’m not sure there was a single loser on diamond 5 between the Panthers and Tigers. In other words, it seemed that everyone got better and had some fun.
Parkway’s rain delay rendition of Natasha Bedingfield’s “Feel the Rain on Your Skin” was a good reminder that even if they’re preparing to play at the high school level, they’re still just kids playing a fun game with their friends. And there’s value in that too.
After the game stop by for a winning ‘Big Buy’ at The Spot, in Sidney. … Presenting sponsor of the Minster Classic!