STANDISH — A look at the score of the Class C South softball championship, and you’d think Madison’s offense was a seven-inning juggernaut. The Bulldogs put up 15 runs, but they scored them in just two innings on just eight hits to take the 15-7 win over Sacopee Valley.
“This, for a playoff game, this is crazy,” said Madison senior third baseman Whitney Bess, who scored the eventual game-winning run in the bottom of the sixth inning.
This is Madison’s third straight trip to the state game, and fifth regional title in six years. Madison, 19-0, will face North champion Narraguagus is the Class C state championship game at St. Joseph’s College Saturday at 12:30 p.m. Sacopee Valley ends the season at 16-3.
This game began at 8 p.m., an hour after the scheduled start, when the Class A South game preceding went nine innings. It ended shortly after 10, when Madison center fielder Sydney LeBlanc caught the final out, setting off the Bulldogs’ celebration.
“We’re up and down. I used to say that you had a week where you had three games, you could see three different teams. Now I’ve changed that tune to you can see three different teams in one game,” Madison coach Chris LeBlanc said.
After the Hawks tied the game in the top of the sixth inning with an unearned run, LeBlanc told his team it had to play as if the game was scoreless. With one out, Bess walked to start the Bulldogs’ rally.
“I’ve been in a little slump. I’m kind of coming out of it. Mostly I’m just thinking I need to score a run. Get on base,” Bess said. “We just needed to manufacture a run, get some outs, and call it a game.”
After Sydney LeBlanc was hit by a pitch, Virginia Worthen reached on a three base error to give Madison a 9-7 lead. Aishah Malloy singled to score Worthen and went to second on an error. A third error extended the inning, and Emily Edgerly, Madison’s nine hitter, hit a based loaded triple to push the Bulldogs lead to 14-7.
Ashley Emery’s RBI groundout capped the scoring.
“We haven’t had more than an error in an inning all season. To have three in one, that’s definitely not what we expect from our team,” Sacopee Valley coach Brian Hink said.
Madison’s eight-run sixth inning came after the Bulldogs scored seven runs in the bottom of the fourth to take a 7-2 lead. The big hit that inning was Virginia Worthen’s two-run single.
The Hawks took a 2-0 lead in the top of the fourth inning on Alexandra Black’s two-run single with two outs. Prior to the game, Coach LeBlanc warned his team, he may be out coached in this one, telling the Bulldogs to look out for the Hawks’ aggressiveness at the plate.
“Maybe that’s shame on me for saying that, but I know that they do an outstanding job. They’ve got slap hitters and they’ve got people who can bunt, and they’re going to be yelling out numbers left and right. What the hell they mean, who knows? But they’re going to be doing something,” LeBlanc said.
Sacopee took a chunk from Madison’s lead with four runs in the top of the fifth, extending the inning on a Madison error. LeBlanc had his infield in, protecting against what he expected the Hawks to do, only to see short pop up that would normally be caught fall for hits.
Sacopee Valley tied the game in the top of the sixth when Lakyn Hink singled to lead off the inning, and scored on an error. The Hawks had nine hits to Madison’s eight, but trouble getting down bunts in the early innings contributed to leaving a few runs off the board, coach Hink said.
“We just didn’t capitalize at times we should have or could have,” he said.
Every player in Madison’s starting lineup scored at least one run. Emery and Worthen each had two hits for the Bulldogs. Lakyn Hink and Brynn Hink each had two hits for Sacopee Valley.
Travis Lazarczyk — 861-9242
tlazarczyk@centralmaine.com
Twitter: @TLazarczykMTM
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