OKLAHOMA CITY – They may have entered their NAIA Championship Opening Round tournament as the No. 4 seed, but the Thunderbirds (30-21, 15-9) have proven they can slay some giants as they pulled out their third win in a row to shoot themselves into the regional final.
The result this time? A 5-3 victory over the Grand View Vikings (38-17, 20-8), who entered the week ranked No. 16 in the entire NAIA. Despite falling behind early and struggling to capitalize on some of their offensive opportunities, the T-Birds never wavered in their approach and were rewarded with a massive sixth inning that proved to be the difference in the game.
Tegan Harnett had a great day at the plate as she hit 3-4 with two RBIs, while Clare VanSpall had two hits of her own as well as a run scored.
Carleen Murray – starting her third game in two days – earned her 19th win of the season as she threw an effective five innings. Madison Hiebert and Mila Anderson were able to close out the game in relief, although the Vikings did make things interesting very late on.
Rewinding back to the beginning of the contest, however, the Thunderbirds looked primed to get the scoring started early as they recorded a pair of singles and a walk in their first three at-bats to load the bases. Unfortunately, they were unable to bring any of those runners home, a common theme in the early going as UBC left seven runners on base in the first four innings while failing to score.
The Vikings, meanwhile, only had three baserunners in total through the first four innings, but they made them count with all three coming in the second. With two on, Ceara Swanson chopped a single through the left side that was just out of reach of the T-Birds infield. That scored Bianca Prickett, and marked the first time that the Thunderbirds had trailed in the Opening Round.
The 'Birds then had to escape a scary situation in the bottom of the fifth, when the Vikings had runners on the corners with no outs. With the pressure on, Murray settled back into a groove, and with some strong defensive play around her the T-Birds kept the deficit to just a single run heading into the sixth.
That proved to be the turning point in the game, as UBC was finally able to breakthrough offensively. After Jillian Matsubara drew a walk with one out, a bunt single from VanSpall and another hit by Mattea Burrill loaded the bases once again.
This time, they took advantage, and for the second day in a row earned a key RBI from a pinch-hitter. It was Kennedy Laird who was called upon by coach Jennifer McKellar, and the CCC Gold Glove winner answered with a powerful single to left field to tie the game.
The T-Birds weren't done there, as after Brielle Donoghue earned another RBI on a ground out to first base, Marin Jorgenson then smacked the ball into the outfield to make it a 3-1 ballgame. Before the inning was out Harnett landed a two-run single that dropped just in front of a diving Vikings outfielder, stretching the lead further in a complete reversal of fortunes from a half inning earlier.
There was still time left for a comeback attempt, however, and Grand View certainly gave it their best shot late in the seventh. With two on and two outs, Naveah Randall looped a single deep into the outfield that scored both runners to cut the lead in half.
After another single from Caedence Risius, McKellar turned to the true freshman Anderson to try and get the final out that her team needed. Stepping into a difficult situation, Anderson walked the first batter she faced on a full count to load the bases. But the Victoria native was able to steel herself, and on the next at-bat forced a high fly ball to shallow centre that was caught to end the game.
The Thunderbirds will now wait and see which team emerges from the opposite side of the bracket to face them in the regional final. With the Opening Round being a double-elimination format, and UBC the only team in their tournament to have not yet lost a game, they will have two chances to make history and advance to the NAIA Softball World Series.
That first opportunity will begin at 2:00 p.m. (PT) tomorrow. Should UBC lose, there will be a final game for all the marbles at 11:00 a.m. (PT) on Thursday.