The Shadow
ROANOKE – All it takes is one.
This was evident Friday for the Alleghany Mountaineers softball team as they topped two-time defending Blue Ridge District champion Northside, 1-0, in eight innings.
Northside starting pitcher Lauren Boitnott had blanked the Mountaineers through seven innings, allowing no hits and recording 12 punch outs. A fourth inning walk to Samantha Fridley was her only blemish.
But Boitnott was injured at the conclusion of the sixth inning after colliding with Alleghany’s Kristen Rose in the basepath. She returned to the mound in the top of the seventh to strike out the side, but that would be the end of her day.
On came Caitlyn Porterfield to pitch in the top of the eighth for the Vikings.
Since the game went to extra innings the International Tiebreak Rule was imposed meaning each team started with a runner at second base every inning.
Kasey McAllister was the third out in the seventh inning for Alleghany so she started on second base in the top of the eighth. Northside’s Brie Pinero made a great play on a sacrifice bunt attempt for the first out, but Laura Peterson was able to lay down a textbook bunt to move McAllister to second.
That brought up Erin Durham with two outs. Durham was 0-for-2 at that point and the Lady Mounties were 0-for-23 as a team, but Durham took the first Porterfield pitch she saw and sent it back through the middle to plate McAllister and give the Lady Mounties a 1-0 lead.
That was more than enough for Alleghany pitcher Stephanie Smith, who had pitched out of two bases loaded jams the previous two innings.
Cara Hoopes started at second base to open the eighth inning for Northside and that is where she stayed.
Smith got Kathleen Carr to pop out on a failed bunt attempt and then got Pinero, who was 2-for-2 with an intentional walk coming into the at-bat, to fly out to right field. Smith then got pinch hitter Lee Ann Fix to hit a slow roller back to her and she fired to first for the third out to seal the win for the Lady Mounties.
“We definitely dodged a bullet today,” said a happy AHS coach Ty Dobbs. “Stephanie pitched well. We knew their ace was on limited innings and if we could make her throw some pitches that we could get to their No. 2.
“We didn’t do that in the early stages of the game,” added Dobbs. “I told the team on the way over that defense was going to win this game and they played hard. That was a huge hit by Erin Durham.”
Durham’s hit was Alleghany’s lone hit on the day, but it proved to be the difference maker.
Northside had two chances to put this one away in regulation.
The Vikings loaded the bases in both the sixth and seventh innings.
The Vikings had runners at second and third with one out in the sixth and on a squeeze bunt attempt, Alleghany third baseman McAllister fielded and tossed to catcher Eli McCutchen for the second out at home. Smith then intentionally walked Pinero and then got Boitnott to ground out to end the inning.
Kasey Craft doubled to lead off the home half of the seventh for the Vikings and moved to third on Aisha Wiley’s sac bunt. Marta Jones reached on an infield error, but Craft was no able to score from third. Smith then issued a walk to Michelle Eplion to load the bags with one out.
Porterfield flew out to AHS right fielder Laura Peterson, who has a strong and accurate arm, for the second out of the inning and Smith got Hoopes to ground out to end the inning and escape her second straight bases loaded jam.
The Alleghany defense also turned a nice play in the top of the first when Smith walked Porterfield to lead off the game. But Porterfield was erased from the bases when catcher McCutchen fired to second baseman Rose for the pickoff at first.
Alleghany (7-3, 1-0) is back in action Monday at home against Jefferson Forest. They return to Blue Ridge District play Tuesday at home when they host Lord Botetourt.
