South Range erases two deficits to top Poland 6-5 and win second straight district title
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BEAVER TOWNSHIP -- A game with five home runs between the two teams wound up being decided by small-ball.
South Range erased two deficits to take down Poland 6-5 in the Division III, South Range District championship with a bottom of the seventh walk off single by junior Gretchen Bartels.
Going into the bottom of the seventh with a 5-5 deadlock, Raiders coach Jeff DeRose saw an opportunity.
South Range tied the game in the fifth inning, and one of those runs came off a mishandled bunt. With multiple power hitters in the lineup, opting to go small was the gambit.
"Just execute and get the ball in play, especially if we're going to bunt," DeRose said. "We were not a real good bunting team. When we had those bunts, I don't think Poland even knew what to do with the one, and that gave us the last couple of runs. Going down 5-3 after tying the game, the momentum quickly shifted back to Poland, but we didn't give up and we executed like we asked them to.
"We got what we wanted at the end of the day. Gretchen comes up and gets that game-winning hit. ... The team that actually makes the least mistakes -- I tell them that all year -- and can execute and do the things that they're asked to do are going to win and that's exactly what happened."
One runner got on, then another, then Juli Stachowicz stepped up to the plate, and was quickly put on base. Bartels then stepped to the plate.
A ball, then another ball, then on the 2-0 count, a foul tip.
On the following pitch however, Bartels made contact again and this time found an open space in the outfield, scoring the winning runner and sending the Raiders back to the regionals.
"It was very nerve-wracking at first, but I knew I could do it and I really wanted to help my team and get into that next game," Bartels said. "I was definitely frustrated that I didn't get complete contact with that first one, but I knew that another one was coming and I was hoping that I could make better contact."
Poland got on the board first with Mary Brant and Katie McDonald each going yard in the first inning to go up 3-0.
With this being the third matchup of the season between the teams and Poland losing the first two, Bulldogs coach Jim Serich took a "house money" approach. Give them all you've got, and let the chips fall.
"The way they beat us the first few times, I told them to just take a swing at them and go have some fun, because the pressure is on them," Serich said.
"We jumped on them early which was fun, but we didn't play clean. If we play a little cleaner, the outcome might have been a little different. That's a great team. They're loaded top to bottom. That's a tough one. We gave it everything we had."
Brant hit two home runs for the Bulldogs and she highlights a returning group that includes Lillian McDonald and Bella Marrie.
Poland's season ends at 16-9.
South Range advances to the regional semifinal on Wednesday at the Willig Softball Complex in Canton where they'll face Wooster Triway. First pitch is set for 5 p.m.
"These kids are hungry," DeRose said. "The senior class (went to state) when they were sophomores. They want it again and I want it for them."