Gamble, Columbiana shut down Rootstown, 7-1
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BEAVER TOWNSHIP -- In an expected battle of elite pitchers, Columbiana's Mackenzi Gamble asserted herself in a dominant 7-1 win against Rootstown and Miami (OH) commit Shelbie Krieger on Tuesday.
Gamble breezed through the Rovers' lineup, striking out 12 batters and in the process, surpassing 400 career strikeouts.
"I think it’s amazing," Columbiana shortstop Caitlynn Pleska said. "She’s such a good pitcher and I love being able to play the field behind her. She makes it easy because she strikes so many girls out that we don’t have to do too much."
After Gamble's three-hit gem, Columbiana coach Daryl Kurtz similarly praised his ace pitcher.
"She's had to face a lot of adversity in her career. Things came fast for her as a freshman," Kurtz said. "She’s really, the last two years, been an amazing player in a circle for us. She’s aggressive, she’s confident -- those long eyelashes, those long fingernails -- she’s super confident. She knows what her abilities are. And she goes out there and she attacks. I’m super proud, very proud."
Gamble (7.0 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 12 K) and the Clippers held a commanding lead late, but as the second game in the Division III, Northeast 1 district semifinals at South Range, a potential stoppage of play due to darkness loomed. If the game had been halted, both teams would have returned to finish the semifinal before the winner played the championship game.
The home-plate umpire said after the game that he would likely have stopped the game for darkness after another batter. And there was concern in the Clippers' dugout that the game would be called, especially as Rootstown scored its first run and loaded the bases in the top of the seventh inning.
"I was worried in the sense that I knew that if it went any further, it was going to be difficult," Kurtz said. "We played yesterday, kind of like our warm-up game before today’s game, so we wanted to try to not play three days in a row and South Range four days in a row."
Fortunately, Gamble made it a dozen strikeouts and ended the game just in time.
Pleska helped out Gamble in the fifth inning with some additional run insurance; Pleska sent a pitch from Krieger over the fence for a two-run home run.
Both Pleska and Ava Davanzo recorded a pair of RBIs in the victory Tuesday.
Columbiana will play the Raiders at South Range on Thursday at 5:30 p.m. in the district championship game. Both Kurtz and Pleska, who both have connections to the school, said they are looking forward to matching up with one of the best teams in the area.
"I coached under Coach DeRose for two years," Kurtz said. "So I’m familiar with the South Range Raider philosophy and what they’re about. This will be the first time that we’ve had a chance to face off from opposing dugouts. ... That's a good program. We have to show up. We have to do our job. We have to take care of business."
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