FINDLAY — Though both teams are young, one thing may have separated Gibsonburg from Wynford in their Division VI regional semifinal — tradition.
The Bears are two years removed from a state Final Four appearance. The Royals had never previously won a district title.
So evenly matched were the teams that it took nine innings to decide the winner, with Gibsonburg finally pushing across a run with two outs in the bottom of the ninth to slip away with a 3-2 victory at Findlay High School.
Gibsonburg will face Ada, a 6-4 winner over Montpelier in the first game, for a regional title back at Findlay on Friday.
“We left some runners out there (9) and the girls know that,” Wynford coach Chelsea Rice said. “We’re going to take this one a little harder just because we’ve been so hot with the bats lately.”
The Royals cruised through the district tournament winning two games by a combined 30-0. Bears’ pitcher Alivia Wauford held them to five hits and one earned run.
Still, as Rice alluded to, Wynford (14-10) had opportunities to win the game late in regulation. With the score tied at 2-2, they loaded the bases with no outs in the sixth inning and had runners on first and second with no outs and were unable to push across the go-ahead run.
Wauford was equal to the task both times with some stellar defensive plays behind her. Gibsonburg coach Sarah Gruner realized her team had to negotiate a minefield to win.
“We had some mental errors on the base paths there,” Gruner said. “It could have killed us. Luckily, we were able to hold off. It was a long one, but it was a good one.”
The key play that helped the Bears survive came with two outs in the seventh. Wynford’s Erin Wolfe hit a long drive in the gap in right-center field. Centerfielder Emma Jividen and freshman right fielder Mia Brink nearly collided but Brink held onto a back-hand stab to save what was likely two runs.
“That was a very nice hit. A very nice play by the right fielder to hold onto it,” Rice said. “Obviously, I wanted it to drop or hit the fence — anything but the catch. It’s still a good hit. I’m proud of Erin for doing that.”
From there, Wauford got her second wind, despite pitching two extra frames. The freshman righthander retired nine of the last 11 Wynford batters she faced, with five strikeouts. The only Royals to reach in that frame were on back-to-back walks with two outs in the ninth.
Besides Wauford, three other Gibsonburg (18-7) starters are freshmen. The coach says they — and the team — have come a long way over the course of the season.
“We’re a young team. We have one senior,” Gruner said. “I understand they’re a very young team as well. But as we’ve gone through this season, we’ve grown and learned from our mistakes. That’s all I can ask from these girls.”
Rylee Robinson went the distance in the circle for Wynford, enduring the extra-inning grind. Robinson looked poised to send the game to a tenth inning when she retired the first two Bears hitters in the ninth.
However, leadoff hitter Ansley Fleming — the lone senior on either roster — smoked a double to centerfield. Cheyene Reese then stroked the first pitch she saw into left field for a single, scoring Fleming with the winning run.
The Royals valiant effort fell one run — one out — short and ended a historic season that got them to the regional tournament.
“It’s a heartbreaker right now. It’s upsetting,” Rice said. “But they did something no other (softball) team has ever done at Wynford.”
Wynford grabbed the first lead in the third inning on a single by Lily Laipply and a throwing error. Gibsonburg tied it in the fourth when Leah Hall doubled, moved up on a sacrifice and scored on a ground out.
Robinson hit a two-out solo home run with two outs in the fifth for the Royals, but the Bears answered in the bottom of the inning on a walk, a single, and an error, setting the stage for extras and the dramatic conclusion.
“That’s a great team — great pitcher, great hitters,” Gruner said. “Just lucky we came out on top.”
Cheyenne Reese led the Gibsonburg offense with three singles and a run batted in. Fleming, Hall, and Wauford doubled and Mackenzie Muntz singled. Wauford fanned 12 and walked six in the circle.
“We’re looking for the long game here. We want to go for the tournament run,” Gruner said. “We have some great rivals within our league (the Sandusky Bay Conference). Calvert, New Riegel, Danbury even. Everybody’s just pushing at us, so it just makes us better and better each time.”
Robinson’s home run was the big blow for Wynford. Laipply had two singles, while Kate McGuire and Makaila Morrison had one each. Robinson recorded two strikeouts and had four walks.
Rice is already looking forward to next year, recognizing that a rematch with Gibsonburg is a real possibility, with both programs bringing back essentially the same rosters.
“I hope to see them next year. I hope to see everyone again in the districts we just had,” Rice said. “I like the district we’re in. I like District 6. It fits us. I think it shows how tough the N10 is. Four of us were in these (districts).”
The Bears have unfinished business.
“We set our goal at the very beginning of the year,” Gruner said. “We wrote it down on paper. We kind of tucked those away in our bags and we’re here. We’re ready to keep on rolling.”
Box score
Wynford 001 010 000 2 5 3
Gibsonburg 000 110 001 3 7 2
WP: Alivia Wauford (12 SO, 6 W)
LP: Rylee Robinson (2 SO, 4 W)
HR: (W) Rylee Robinson (solo, 5th inning).
Triples: None.
Doubles: (G) Ansley Fleming, Leah Hall, Alivia Wauford.
Multiple hits: (W) Lily Laipply; (G) Cheyenne Resse 3.
Records: Wynford 14-10; Gibsonburg 18-7.
Next: Wynford season over; Gibsonburg vs. Ada, Division VI regional final, Friday, at Findlay.