Shadow Ridge stays alive
RENO -- Rayna Bradshaw came to bat sweaty, probably more than a little tired and a bit frustrated in the seventh inning Friday.
The Shadow Ridge senior catcher also was determined to end her team's game against Foothill and stay alive in the Class 4A state softball tournament.
Bradshaw delivered a bases-loaded single, scoring Rae-Ann Bohm with the winning run, in the bottom of the seventh as the Mustangs downed Foothill 3-2 in an elimination game at Bishop Manogue High School.
"I was just trying to hit something hard, something deep," Bradshaw said. "Anything that touched the grass was going to win the game. I had to find something I could hit."
Shadow Ridge (25-2) survived to face Reed (28-15) in the losers bracket final at 10 a.m. today. That winner must defeat powerhouse and defending state champion Spanish Springs (41-5) twice to win the state title.
Shadow Ridge had to play consecutive games on a day when temperatures topped 90 degrees.
"It's stressful and tiring, but I wouldn't trade it for anything in the world," Bradshaw said.
The Mustangs' opener was no beauty as Shadow Ridge allowed 11 unearned runs in a 12-6 loss to Reed.
"We had a little meeting (between games), and I reminded them it's not over unless they believed it's over," Mustangs coach Cynthia Winter said. "They got it back together. It's the will to win, and that's what most of the girls have."
Bradshaw, who caught every inning of both games, gave the Mustangs a 1-0 lead in the third inning of their second game with a two-out single that brought home Ashley Eldridge.
Eldridge bumped the lead to 2-0 in the fifth, scoring from third base when Jasmine Harris got caught in a rundown while trying to steal second.
The Mustangs made the lead stand until the top of the seventh.
Foothill's Myranda Mortel was hit by Mandy Harmon's first pitch of the inning. On the next pitch, Lacy Daly appeared to ground out to third, but umpires ruled the batted ball hit Daly first and was foul, giving Daly a second chance.
She made the most of it, crushing a 2-2 pitch over the fence in left-center field to tie the game.
Bohm led off the bottom of the seventh with a double and stayed at second when Eldridge reached on a fielder's choice. Harris' bloop single to right loaded the bases for Bradshaw. On a 1-1 pitch, Bradshaw hit a bounding ball to center to end the game.
"She's clutch. She's been clutch all year," Winter said.
Harmon, who didn't get much rest between games and chose not to warm up before the Foothill game, allowed the Falcons just four hits and struck out eight.
In the two games, Harmon threw a combined total of 231 pitches.
"Our team wouldn't be half of what it is without Mandy," Bradshaw said.
Daly was 2-for-3 with the two-run homer for the Falcons (22-23), who lost a 14-2 decision to Spanish Springs in the first game of the day.
"After the mistakes they made in the first game, the girls could have easily thrown in the towel," Falcons coach Tom Mayes said. "They showed a lot of character and battled back."
• Reed 12, Shadow Ridge 6 -- The Raiders erased a 2-0 deficit by scoring seven runs on three hits in the top of the second inning and never looked back.
Ali Berry slugged two three-run homers for Reed, which built a 10-2 lead in the fourth.
Bradshaw and Ashley Huddleston homered for the Mustangs, who made six errors.
• Spanish Springs 14, Foothill 2 -- Cougars junior Mallary Darby tossed four no-hit innings, struck out eight and gave her team plenty of time to build a lead.
Spanish Springs scored three runs in the first inning and added three in the third on consecutive homers by Jennifer Martensen and Amanda Collier. The Falcons committed five errors.
Foothill scored against reliever Annalee Rubio in the fifth as Rosie Ritchie delivered a two-out, two-run single.
• Spanish Springs 10, Reed 0 -- Darby was fabulous again, tossing a five-inning one-hitter and striking out eight in the winners bracket final.
Karlyn Jones hit two home runs, including a three-run shot in the fifth that ended the game on the mercy rule.
