The triumphant ride that was the Portland State softball team’s season came to a screeching halt at the hands of the Baylor Bears on Saturday afternoon. For the second time at the weekend’s NCAA Regional Tournament in Corvallis the Bears stole a game in the seventh inning that was primarily dominated by the Viks. However, even with the losses the Vikings assembled a groundbreaking season, compiling a 38-20 record and receiving the programs first tournament berth in their first season under head coach Amy Hayes.
Participating in postseason festivities at the Division I level was a new experience for every member of the Portland State softball team before they took they field in their first game against Baylor on Friday afternoon. But, even though the Viks were lacked sufficient postseason experience they began the first chapter of their postseason existence appearing to have done it all before, playing without the expected faults that usually accompany inexperience. This sense of familiarity and comfort with the normally nerve racking experience that is tournament play, could result from the Vikingss approach to the weekend.
“I think that the fire in us, the want to win overcame the nervousness,” sophomore right-handed pitcher Mandy Hill said.
Junior leftfielder Kimi Daniel shared Hill’s sentiment about the Viks mentality coming into the pivotal weekend.
“I definitely think that each of us was a little bit nervous but we definitely knew this is where we wanted to be,” Daniel said. “Since day one we talked about coming to regionals and playing as hard as we could.”
Without showing any signs of being nervous, the Viks came out and handed Baylor, the number 19 team in the nation, a legitimate fight in game one. Hill supplied a huge spark in the top of the first, blasting a two run homerun off junior right-hander Lisa Ferguson for her 12th of the season.
In the bottom of the first the Bears were threatening but the Viks defense held, only allowing one run in the inning to bring the score to 2-1. Portland State would add another run in the fourth inning when Daniel singled. Daniel then stole second base and advanced one more time on a single by sophomore-designated player Stephanie Bean, later being scored on a squeeze bunt by freshman second baseman Jamee Rauch.
Throughout the game the Viks played solid defense, especially senior shortstop Lacey Gorman and Daniel in leftfield. On several occasions Gorman, who was also two for three at the plate, received a quick chopper directly to her but she was never fazed, simply scooping the ball and making the throw to for the out at first base. Daniel played the outfield like a bona fide professional, making difficult plays seem routine and effortless. On one occasion Daniel made an instant reaction to ball hit about ten feet in front of her and made a spectacular face first sliding catch to earn the out.
After her first inning antics Baylor understood that Hill played exactly how the scouting reports described, great on the mound and powerful at the plate. On the mound, Hill pitched pretty well considering the Bears talented, athletic lineup. She stuck out five, allowing four earned runs and seven hits in 6 1/3 innings, to earn a no decision. Aside from her two run homer in the first Hill wasn’t provided with many opportunities for an encore at the plate because the Bears wouldn’t pitch to her, opting to intentionally walk her twice.
Coming into the seventh inning the Viks held their 3-1 lead and didn’t appear to have any intentions of surrendering it. However, after Hill struck out centerfielder Miriam Romero the top of the Bear’s order was due up to bat. This is where the game began to slip away from the Viks. Leftfielder Kelly Osburn slammed a homer to centerfield to bring the bears to within one. The next batter Harmony Schwethelm managed to tie the game by hitting a single, stealing two bases and then benefiting from Viks’ error. After the next batter Tessa Lynam was walked Hayes decided to insert senior right-handed pitcher Michelle Hext.
Hext would face the toughest hitter in the Bears’ lineup, junior catcher Chelsi Lake. Lake came into the game with 16 homeruns on the season and with one swing of the bat added another homer to that total, shocking Portland State and giving her team the victory.
“I feel like we played 6 1/3 great innings of ball, had a bit of breakdown in the seventh,” Hayes said. “Baylor is an outstanding team and they are going to battle to last out. This Viking’s team is too good this year to be defined by this one game, we are not going to be a little, one hit wonder in our first time to regionals, Cinderella story. We are better than that and we will be defined by how we come out tomorrow.”
In their second game of the tournament the Viks illustrated that they were much more than a one hit wonder by capturing a 2-1 victory over Nevada on Saturday. For the Viks, it was their fourth victory of the season over the Wolf Pack, ultimately eliminating them for the tournament. Hill performed magnificently on her way to a complete game, allowing one run on only two hits for the entire seven innings. The Vikings won when Daniel slid into home to score the deciding run in sixth on a Rauch chopper that had just enough speed to score her from third.
With the win over Nevada the Viks arranged another match up with Baylor, with the winner advancing to the championship game against Oregon State. In the second, junior third basemen Katie Stokes’ single scored freshman right fielder Jackie Heide to give the Viks a one run lead. Also in the second, sophomore centerfielder Laura Segall added to the Viks lead by scoring on a past ball.
But the Bears stormed back. With the bases loaded in the sixth the Bears scored two runs on a two-out error to deadlock the game at two. Just as the Bears had in their first meeting they rallied in the seventh, this time on a sacrifice bunt by junior second baseman Kylie Conroy that scored freshman catcher Alex Coyler from third base. The Viks were extremely close, bringing the tying run to third during the bottom of the seventh. But, it wasn’t enough in the end, falling victim to the Bears’ seventh inning antics for the second time in two days.
Returning home from their first NCAA Regional appearance on Saturday night wasn’t exactly the Viking’s plan prior to the tournament. However, evaluating the season as a whole and taking into account that they were just half an inning away from defeating Baylor twice in the tournament, the Viks had an extremely successful season. At 38-20 on the season, the Viks should be proud of their impressive play because they assembled the kind of year that builds a program into perennial contender.