Wildcats make elite eight at state

RIESEL—Going into the Texas Teena Softball Association’s state tournament la week, the Rockdale Wildcats weren’t ev supposed to be there.

Finishing third at their respective ditrict tournament a week prior meant t Wildcats weren’t eligible for state, due the tourney only taking the top two team from each district.

However, with one team not maki the trip to Riesel, the Rockdale squad w invited and had one more chance to play.

The girls certainly didn’t waste that chance either.

“I wasn’t expecting a whole lot, because we were a third-place team,” Wildcat coach Pete Rubio said. “I told the girls that the coaches are along for the ride and we can help you with making adjustments.”

“But it’s up to all of us if we want to make a run while we’re here,” he added.

In their tourney opener against Bosqueville, the Wildcats did just that. They beat the Waco area squad, 8-5, and gave themselves a day to rest before facing McGregor, the team that gave the Wildcats both of their losses at district. The second loss was what initially eliminated them from a shot at competing for a state championship.

The showdown between the Wildcats and McGregor at state was a close one. But according to Rubio, the McLennan County squad changed hurlers and the Wildcats struggled to adapt, losing 8-6.

“Ultimately, they switched pitchers and the game ended before we could get used to her throwing,” Rubio said.

The defeat put the Rockdale girls one loss away from elimination, and also meant the Wildcats had to stick around Riesel for the remainder of the day to face a team from Hillsboro later in the evening.

Against the Hill County team, Rubio described his team as having a tug-of-war battle over the lead.

In the fifth inning, Hillsboro went up 2-1 before Rockdale bounced back in the sixth to tie the game at two. With the game tied after seven full innings, the two teams were forced to battle in extra innings.

“When the game went to extra innings, I told them it’s about how bad you want it,” Rubio said. “And they went after it.”

After one inning played, the Wildcats prevailed and won 3-2 after a Diana Banda hit brought in Izabella Delgadillo to score.

“They were ecstatic after the win,” Rubio said. “I think the game ended around 11:30 p.m. too.”

The next morning, they took on Belton United, who closed the book on the Wildcats’ Cinderella story.

The two teams were tied in the fifth, but Belton scored two runs in the sixth to make it, 7-5.

That was enough to end the season for the Rockdale Wildcats.

Despite the ending, the Wildcats finished among the top eight teams at state and the coaches and players are collectively happy with what they were able to accomplish during their week in Riesel.

“I couldn’t be more proud of these girls,” Rubio said. “It was a bittersweet ride, because I also finished my league presidency term but I never could have imagined that we would make it to district, and to state.”

“A lot of our girls were crying and I told them to keep their heads up high, because this is a ride that you’ll remember forever,” he added.

Players like Rubio’s daughter Olivia, an incoming sophomore at RHS who pitched for the Lady Tigers this past spring, also enjoyed the week.

“It was a good run that showed we really did deserve to be there competing,” she said. “After our rough high school season, it felt great to get some more experience before next year.”

Thorndale student Karis Ginn helped lead the Lady Dogs to the regional finals in May. She was also named District 27-2A Pitcher of the Year during her freshman season and was asked to join the Wildcats right before the district tournament and spoke highly of the experience.

“I pick up with teams constantly,” Ginn said. “So I’ve known a few of the girls on this team for a while. They helped me get to know the others and that made it easy to fit in.”

The Wildcats were coached by Rubio, Sam Molina and Craig Collins.

Other players who were not mentioned throughout this story were Jaycie Hartley, Rylee Lamb, Kaylee Veit, Nicole Collins, Laylee Lankford and Lilly Schmidt.