Marshfield completed the team sport sweep for girls sports for the second year in a row when the Pirates clinched the Sky-Em title in softball with their win in the opener of a doubleheader against North Bend last Wednesday.
The Pirates finished the sweep in the nightcap and now have won the volleyball, basketball and softball titles two straight years. Senior Gracie Peach and junior Tatum Montiel have been key members of all those teams.
North Bend could have taken the softball title with wins in both games of the doubleheader after sweeping Cottage Grove a day earlier, but the Pirates used big innings to keep it from happening.
Marshfield won the opener 20-7, pulling away late with five runs in the sixth inning and four in the seventh.
CeCe Cox had two three hits, two runs and four RBIs; Faith Hite had three hits and four runs; Montiel had three hits, two runs and an RBI; Peach had three runs and three RBIs; Rowan Hampton had two hits and four RBIs; and Natalie Jadin had two hits and two RBIs.
Laila Veloz and Mirra Riddle each had home runs for North Bend. Riddle and McKenzie Breakfield each had two runs and Adrianna Delph had two hits.
Marshfield won the nightcap 19-9, scoring three runs in the first inning, four in the second and five in the third and putting the game away with six more in the sixth.
Montiel clubbed a pair of home runs and a double and added a single while amassing six RBIs and two runs in the contest. Hampton also had a home run. Peach had four hits, three runs and two RBIs; Hite had three hits, three runs and three RBIs; and Makenna Johnson and Mackenzie Fitzgerald-Thornton both had two hits, two runs and two RBIs.
North Bend kept the game close with three runs in the first and four in the third, but missed other chances to score and couldn’t stay with Marshfield. Breakfield had two hits for the Bulldogs and Riddle had a double and scored two runs.
Both teams now await first-round games in the Class 4A playoffs on May 21, with Marshfield playing at home and North Bend on the road. They won’t learn their opponents until after the play-in round is completed.
Marshfield finished the league season with an 11-1 record and is 18-6 overall. They have accomplished their success with a lot of the same pieces as last year, though many in new roles.
Along the way, they have continued to impress coach Chelsea Burns.
“This team is unlike any group of girls I have been around,” she said. “They seem to play together and play to have fun. There really is no quit in this team.”
The Pirates knew there would be a lot of position changes this year, but Burns was confident the team had the talent to repeat as Sky-Em champs.
“I think the coaching staff knew they could bring it home again, but we weren’t sure if they knew that,” she said.
Early season trips to Klamath Falls, where they swept Mazama, beat Lakeview and lost a close game to Henley; and to a spring break tournament in Grants Pass where they beat Crook County and lost a close game to Astoria; helped build confidence.
“I think they really started to see just how good they could be,” she said.
Two extra-innings games in league play helped cement that. At Cottage Grove the Pirates and Lions were tied in the bottom of the seventh and Cottage Grove had the bases loaded and no outs.
“These girls found a way to gut it out and take us to the eighth (inning), score three runs and hold them (off) for the win,” Burns said.
Marshfield also beat Marist Catholic in eight innings last week.
That set up the season-ending doubleheader with the Bulldogs.
“With such close games leading up to North Bend, we weren’t really sure what to expect,” Burns said. “A lot of these North Bend and Marshfield girls are friends considering proximity and some are even related, so there is a bit of uncertainty of what you will get on game day. Fortunately, our girls showed up to compete and got it done both defensively and offensively.”
The result is the league title.
“I’m proud of this group and their efforts and achievements,” Burns said. “We are fortunate to be led by a great group of seniors, including Makenna Johnson, Gracie Peach and Jayla Johnson who have been on varsity since their freshman year. In that mix of seniors is also Faith Hite, who has had a stellar year for us at the plate, and Natalie Jadin has really come into her own keeping the damage that can be done at the hot corner (third base) to a minimum.”
Added to that leadership is the team’s ability to play together and play for each other, no matter their role on the team.
“We have girls who are playing new positions for us this year and while it may not be their desired position, they continue to work at it and be the best they can be,” Burns said.
Thornton, a sophomore, and Hampton, a freshman both could pitch, but have stood out in the outfield. Jayla Johnson, Jocelyn Mulkey and Montiel have handled the pitching duties and Montiel also is the league’s top first baseman, Burns said.
“Overall, it has been fun watching this team grow and progress through the season, and while they have already made history by being the first (Marshfield) team to go back-to-back with league titles, I know they aren’t done yet,” Burns said. “The goal from day one has been to make it past the first round of the playoffs and make it to the elite eight, something that I don’t think has been done before.”
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