Lower Columbia softball falls in NWAC championship series
PORTLAND - Lower Columbia softball led 4-1 heading into the bottom of the fifth inning against Mt. Hood in the second game of the NWAC championship series.
However, the Red Devils couldn't hold onto the lead and fell to the Saints 6-5 on Sunday at Delta Park, coming up just short of winning their second straight NWAC title.
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"I'm heartbroken for our sophomores," LCC coach Traci Fuller said. "For some of them, this is the last time they're ever going to play competitively. It's just always sad to see it end."
Lower Columbia took the crown last year and finished the season 48-0 overall, becoming the first NWAC softball team ever to go undefeated.
Lower Columbia softball: Kendall Humphrey
Lower Columbia's Kendall Humphrey swings her bat during the first game of the NWAC championship series against Mt. Hood on Sunday, May 17, at Delta Park in Portland. Humphrey hit a 2-run homer in each of the two games against the Saints on Sunday. She also hit a game-winning grand slam versus Mt. Hood in the semifinals on Saturday.
The final play of the game was a bang-bang play. Dani Ambriz hit a grounder and nearly beat out the throw to first, but she was called out. Fuller said she disagreed with the call and urged the tournament to add instant replay, also citing another close play in the first inning.
"I don't like that call at first," she said. "This was the only game that I can remember where I probably would have challenged two calls. I would have loved to go to the camera. I think it's just something we need to have in the championships. That's how I feel about that last call. We need to have instant replay."
Neither team scored in the opening frame. The Saints got on the board in the second inning to take a 1-0 lead. The Red Devils countered in the top of the fourth with four runs to go ahead 4-1. Kendall Humphrey hit a 2-run homer, Elysa Nash sacrificed to bring in a run, and Ava Eib hit an RBI single.
However, Mt. Hood took the lead for good in the fifth after scoring 5 runs. Alisyn Parkin hit a home run in the seventh to pull LCC within 1 prior to Ambriz's close call at first.
The Red Devils totaled 10 hits in the contest. Nash, Jaime Haase, and Emma Langsi each had two hits while Ambriz finished with one. In the field, the Red Devils had two errors in the game and gave up 2 unearned runs.
Lower Columbia softball: Alisyn Parkin
Lower Columbia's Alisyn Parkin swings her bat during the first game of the NWAC championship series against Mt. Hood on Sunday, May 17, at Delta Park in Portland. Parkin hit a home run in the second game against the Saints on Sunday.
This was the sixth meeting of the season between the two juggernaut programs, with Mt. Hood holding a 4-3 edge in the season series. The Saints also took the matchup earlier on Sunday in the first game of the championship series 11-3.
"It's always a battle when we play Hood," Fuller said. "You never know who's gonna win."
The NWAC tournament allowed for most teams to lose a game and still win it all. The Red Devils beat the Saints 5-4 on Saturday in the semifinals thanks to Humphrey's game-winning grand slam in the top of the sixth, causing Mt. Hood to drop to the consolation bracket.
There, the Saints defeated Clackamas and earned a trip to the NWAC championship series. They had to win both games on Sunday to be declared champions, while LCC had to win just one.
In the opening game on Sunday, Mt. Hood scored 2 runs in the top of the first inning. Danika Hallom hit an RBI single in the bottom of the frame to cut the deficit to 1, but three home runs from the Saints in the third increased their lead to 5.
They added 2 more runs at the top of the fourth before Humphrey hit a 2-run home run for LCC to make it a 4-run game. However, Mt. Hood scored 1 run each in the fifth and sixth innings, and LCC couldn't come back in time.
The tough losses don't take away from the great season the Red Devils had. They finished with a 47-7 overall record with a 29-3 mark in the NWAC South, claiming the league title. During the season, they enjoyed a 38-game winning streak, which came to an end earlier in May against none other than Mt. Hood.
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"I hope (my players) don't think of themselves as not adequate, because in my eyes, they're champions," Fuller said.
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