By Steve Eldridge
MENDON — Colon squared off against the Gobles Tigers last Saturday in the Division 4 girls regional softball regionals, and came up on the short end of a 14-1 score. The game was played in Mendon, and the start of the game was moved up to 12pm due to early-morning rain showers.
The Lady Tigers, ranked No. 10 in D-4, took an early 1-0 lead in the first inning on a leadoff walk to Kylie Killeen. On an attempted steal, she came around to score when the throw went into centerfield. That was followed by a single and an error, putting runners at first and second with nobody out, however Magi pitcher Alyssa Hess retired the next three batters in order, limiting the damage to just a single run.
Hess led off the bottom of the first with a base hit, but was stranded as the next three Colon hitters were retired in order.
The Lady Tigers went three up, three down in the second inning, setting up what looked to be a big inning for the Magi. Madison Kulpinski laced a single to lead off the second, followed by a bunt single by Taylor Wilson. Rylie Kyle drew a walk, loading the bases, but freshman pitcher Kelsee Sherrod whiffed the next two hitters, leaving it up to Hess to get Colon on the board. She delivered a single, driving in Kulpinski to tie the game at one. With the bases still loaded, Sherrod got the third out on a pop up to retire the side.
Gobles made some noise in the third on a leadoff walk to Kylee Killeen. She then swiped second, and on a groundball, went to third. In an attempt to get the runner at first, the throw was high, leaving runners at first and third. A single by Jackson plated two runs, making the score 3-1. Following that, an error and another two-run single gave Gobles a 5-1 lead. A sacrifice put a runner on second, and on the next play, another high throw to first resulted in runners on first and third for Gobles. That was followed by yet another throw to first on a groundball that pulled Kulpinski off the bag, scoring another run. With runners on second and third, Hess whiffed the next hitter, but a two-run double drove in two, moving the Tigers into an 8-1 lead, The runner was thrown out trying to advance to this, ending the inning, but not until seven runners had crossed the plate.
The Magi were retired in order in the bottom of the third, but in the fourth, the Tigers added to their lead. A leadoff double and a long, two-run homer by Jackson gave the winners a 10-1 advantage. Colon got a runner to first on a walk in the bottom of the inning, but could not dent the scoring column. Gobles went scoreless in the fifth, as did the Magi, but the Tigers weren’t through. They strung together four more base hits, which produced another four runs, putting the game out of reach. Colon was retired in order in the bottom of the sixth, ending the game with a final score of 14-1. Hess went the distance for Colon, striking out seven and walking only two. Hess led the Magi offense with two hits, while Wilson and Kulpinski both had one hit.
“They (Gobles) hit the ball as hard as anyone we’ve faced all season,” Asst. coach Joel Herr said. “We had some girls that were asked to play out of position today, and that’s a tough situation to be placed in. Our girls did a great job this year, and I’m really proud of how we got here.”
