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| Allen Ramsey Photo. Highlands seventh-grade second baseman Rachel Gabbard makes a play in Thursday’s 9th Region championship game. Gabbard had a key two-run double to lift the Ladybirds to their first-ever region championship, 8-7 over Notre Dame. |
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| Allen Ramsey Photo. Highlands junior Payton Leighty makes a catch in the championship game. |
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| Allen Ramsey Photo. Highlands sophomore Bailey Spencer delivers to the plate in the regional championship game. Spencer came back nine days from Appendix surgery to help Highlands to the title. |
By G. MICHAEL GRAHAM
Fort Thomas Matters Sports Reporter
HIGHLAND
HEIGHTS – One giant mountain stood in the way of a trip to the Commonwealth’s
version of the softball promised land.
The
Highlands Ladybirds had taken care of the other 9th Region powers. But they
needed to figure out a way to end a six-game losing streak to the defending
region champion Notre Dame Pandas to nab their first 9th Region crown in their
first-ever appearance in the title game. That included a 3-0 Panda win in last
year’s 9th Region semifinals.
It also did
not help that Notre Dame (28-6) scored six times in the top half of its first
at-bat. But the Ladybirds (26-11) dug deep, tied the game, took the lead late
and held on for a historic 8-7 victory Thursday at Northern Kentucky
University.
The win
helped Highlands extend its school records for most wins in school history and
18-game winning streak. The Ladybirds also beat the Pandas for the first time
since 2011.
The win
puts Highlands in the state tournament at Owensboro’s Jack C. Fisher Park on
Thursday against the 14th Region champion Estill County Lady Engineers (26-13).
The game starts at 7 p.m. Central Standard Time.
“We had a vision at the beginning of the
year that this was our year,” said Ashley Grosser, Highlands senior
outfielder. “We just kept pushing and
pushing. We anything was possible because we expect more of ourselves. What can
you say? I couldn’t do it without my teammates.”
A big key
for Highlands has been that the coaching staff knows how to handle teen-age girls.
It also helps that Coffey has raised two daughters in Haley, a sophomore, and
Morgan, a seventh-grader, who play on the team.
“Girls are completely wired different than men,” Coffey said. “The
wiring in their heads does not react to the wiring in male coaches sometimes.
The adjustment before the winning streak is we felt we needed to get inside
their heads. We’d pull them aside and start talking about everything outside of
softball so we could figure out why they shut down and don’t react to things. I
have a great coaching staff. That’s one of the unique things about girls where
you learn each one individually. It’s not like boys where you tell them to shut
up and get out there.”
Highlands
struggled against Notre Dame junior pitcher Haylee Smith in last year’s
tournament. But the Ladybirds got to her for eight hits and three walks. They
also took advantage of one Notre Dame error. Smith struck out seven.
Brennah
Dutcher led Highlands going 2-for-3 with two runs batted in and a run scored.
No one else had more than two hits, but Whitney Quillen tripled and Rachel
Gabbard doubled.
“We knew Haylee Smith was a dominant pitcher in the
region,” Quillen said. “So we tried to shorten up our swings and
poke at it. Our Coach (Coffey) said just to score inning by inning and we’ll
catch them. Don’t try to score a bunch now. We did. It’s quite an
accomplishment.”
Highlands
pitcher Bailey Spencer may not have thrown her best game. But she did settle
down after the first inning. Spencer allowed 10 hits, struck out two and walked
seven.
Amanda
Meagher, Laura Finke and Kennedy Baugh had two hits each for the Pandas.
Meagher had two runs batted in with Abby Jones doubling and scoring twice.
Kelsey Michael added a double for Notre Dame.
Highlands
began to cut into the lead in the bottom of the first. Quillen led off the
inning with a double and scored when Shelby Graybill singed her home. Dutcher
hit in the other Highlands run.
The
Ladybirds came back to tie the game at six in the third against Smith, who lost
to a Northern Kentucky team for the first time this year. Graybill reached
first on a fielder’s choice and Taylor Baioni ran for her. Kendall Turner then
reached on an infield single before Grosser was hit by a pitch to load the
bases. Dutcher then reached on an error scoring Baioni before Gabbard, a
seventh-grader, doubled to left field scoring Turner and Grosser. Then with two
out, Payton Leighty reached on an error scoring Dutcher to tie the game.
“I haven’t seen anything like that,” Coach Coffey said of Gabbard. “It’s been an unbelievable roller coaster ride the entire season. She’s
one of those key players who rises to the occasion.”
Notre Dame
did put a runner on third with one out in the fifth. But Spencer got Sullivan
to strike out and Michael to ground out to end the threat.
The
Ladybirds came through and scored twice in the sixth to go up 8-6. Morgan
Coffey walked before Leighty laid down a bunt. The Pandas tried to get Morgan
Coffey at second, but the throw went into center. However, they got her at
third.
Following a
ground out that forced Leighty at second, Haley Coffey and Graybill drew walks
to load the bases. That’s when things became interesting.
Turner
appeared to have fouled the ball to the right. But the umpires huddled and ruled
the ball hit Turner’s wrist allowing Quillen to score the go-ahead run.
“I know that the hand is part of the bat above a certain
point,” Turner said. “I know I missed it by a centimeter and a
half. (The wrist) was as purple as it will get as soon as it hit the hand. It
feels unreal that we’re going to state.”
Coach
Coffey said he initially felt like many in the stands that it hit Tuner’s bat
initially. But he said he then checked Turner and felt differently.
“Honestly, I hate winning on that because it’s a shame,” Coach Coffey said. “I took a sprint in the Notre Dame dugout and it’s sad. I’m happy we
won. But I feel horrible for them.”
Highlands
then added an insurance run that proved huge the next inning. Grosser singled
to right scoring Baioni.
But Notre
Dame did not go quietly in the seventh inning. Jones reached on a fielder’s
choice and moved to second on a wild pitch before Meagher drew a walk. Then
with two out, Jones and Meagher pulled off a double steal.
The Pandas
appeared to have tied the game when Michael doubled to right. However, Meagher
missed third base and had to retreat leaving runners at second and third with
Highlands up 8-7. Following a walk to load the bases, Spencer got Finke to pop
out to Dutcher in shallow right to end the game.
Dutcher was named tournament most valuable player. Graybil, Quillen and Spencer joined her on the team along with Newport Central Catholic pitcher Haley Meyers.
Notre Dame
went 1-2 in the state tournament last year. The Pandas graduate six seniors
from this year’s 35th District champion.