Lady Royals Win First LCAA Softball Title Since 2004

Blissfield swept Erie Mason tonight to capture a share of the Lenawee County Athletic Association Championship. The Royals won the first game, 2-0, in a nine-inning thriller. Blissfield, which finished 8-2 in the LCAA to tie Onsted, won the second game 1-0 in another hair-raising victory.

The Royals needed to win both games to win a share of the LCAA title, its first since 2004.

Ace Hannah McEwan was brilliant in the opener. She allowed just three hits and three walks in the  nine-inning complete game shutout. McEwan fanned nine.

Playing international rules, teams began extra innings with a runner on second base. McEwan escaped without giving up a run twice.

In the ninth, Kassie Sauter started at second base. She took third on a wild pitch. Lauren Lievens reached base when a throw pulled the first basemen off the bag. McEwan walked to load the bases. Megan Knierim followed with a hard ground ball to shortstop. The ball bounced up off her glove and into the outfield, allowing two runs to score. Jennifer Sell followed with a sharp line drive to centerfield, but McEwan was thrown out at the plate on a dispute play.

With McEwan having thrown nine innings and the Royals desperately needing a win, Jessica Martinez came through in the clutch. She pitched her best game of the season, allowing two hits and two walks and holding Erie Mason to no runs through 6 1/3 innings. She struck out six.

With one out in the seventh, and Blissfield leading 1-0, Erie Mason put a runner on base with a single. The next batter bunted reached base when catcher Jane Pearson threw the ball beyond Zoe Brennan at first. Erie Mason had runners at second and third. Coach Rich Tracy called in McEwan to relive Martinez. The first batter hit a soft grounder. Lievens fielded the ball and made sure the runner at third wouldn’t run home. The bases were now loaded. McEwan struck out the next batter for the second out. McEwan worked the next hitter to a full count before she hit a sharp ground ball to Sauter at short. Sauter threw out the runner to preserve the win and help Blissfield clinch a tie for the LCAA title.

Blissfield scored its only run in the third when Pearson singled. She took second on a passed ball and then went to third on Lauren DeMille’s two-out infield single. Sauter singled to score Pearson for the game’s only run.