Riding high!

AUSTIN – The Thorn-dale High School softball team’s state run ended with a three-hour red hot finale loss to No. 1 ranked Crawford.

Lady Bulldogs, ranked second in state, ended the season as runner up in the UIL Class 2A State Championship at McCombs Field in Austin last Thursday.

“It was really a heavyweight fight,” said THS Coach Lance Betak. “This season was a giant leap forward. We’ve been to the fourth round the last four, five, six years and we could never break through that.”

The lead changed four times in the game, which went an extra inning.

It ended when Crawford’s Makenzie Dunbar doubled in the eighth on a 1-1 count off Thorndale’s Riley White to give the Lady Pirates an 8-7 win.

“I’m so proud of my team. We fought back and we never gave up,” White said. “I know we wanted to win but Crawford’s a really good team.”

After fighting back tears, Betak was upbeat when he spoke about the future of the Lady Bulldog program.

“Now, we’ve finally broken through in a big way by getting to the state tournament,” he said. “I mean, we got a run-rule win against Windthorst the day before, so it’s big what we’ve done.”

CRAWFORD – Thorn-dale’s Kelsey Kovar scored the first run of the game at the top of the third inning with a single that brought in Emilee Baker to give THS a 1-0 lead.

The Lady Pirates went up 3-1 in the bottom of the fourth when Kyla Mach, Dunbar and Avery Ward led off the inning with singles. Ward brought in Mach with a line drive to right field to tie the game and Dunbar and Ward would score on ground outs by Cambree Aguirre and Kelsey Ray giving them a 3-1 lead.

Thorndale regained the lead in the top of the fifth after loading the bases with no outs. Kovar hit a two-run single to take back the lead 4-3 and the Lady Bulldogs scored another three runs with two outs.

Kovar made the game 5-3 after Kiesling’s pop fly bounced off the glove of Dunbar at the pitchers mound and allowed her to score. Madison Kelm hit a two-run line drive to center field to make the game 7-3.

Crawford tied the game in the bottom of the sixth after three errors led to four runs to tie the game at seven. The Lady Pirates won in the bottom of the eighth, 8-7.

“We got some momentum and clutch hits midway through the game and built a pretty big lead,” Betak said. “We haven’t given up a lead that big this year.

“Just a couple of costly errors in the sixth inning led to Crawford scoring four runs to tie us. That’s what got us in the end.”

Kovar and Kelm led THS at the plate with two hits. Baker, Flores and Kiesling each had one. White had five strikeouts from the circle.

WINDTHORST —

The Lady Bulldogs shut out Windthorst 10-0 in the state semi-final game on Wednesday afternoon in Austin.

Thorndale didn’t waste any time in their first state tournament appearance taking an 8-0 lead in the bottom of the first.

The rally was started by a Kovar single that scored Jayci Martinka. Kate Casey then hit a two-run single to right field to make the game 3-0. Thorndale then scored on a walk and a pass ball to make it 5-0. Baker put the Lady Bulldogs up 7-0 with a two-run double to center field and Martinka brought in Baker on a line drive to right field to make it 8-0.

Baker drove in another run in the bottom of the third when she singled to right field scoring Kelm and making it 9-0.

Thorndale won their first-ever state tournament game when Baker tripled in the fifth and scored Amber Dee for a 10-0 win which resulted in the mercy rule being called.

Baker led the team with three hits and Martinka, Kovar, Casey, Flores, Paulsen and Kelm each had one hit. White struck out seven.

NEXT YEAR – Overall Thorndale’s starting lineup included four seniors, three juniors, one sophomore and two freshman on the team.

Of their starters catcher Kelm, right fielder Kiesling, center fielder Hannah Laurence and second base Maddie Flores graduated.

“We’re going to miss our seniors and they’ve been a part of a lot of wins for this program,” Betak said.

Junior starters coming back next year are shortstop Jayci Martinka, first base Kate Casey and pitcher White, the District 27-2A MVP.

Designated hitter Jacey Paulsen is a sophomore.

Freshmen are Baker in left field and Kovar at third base.

“But I think we’re turning the corner and the expectation is to be back here next season.”