The Morning Journal (Lorain, OH)
Keystone claims D-II region title, advances
Keystone tops Defiance to claim regional title, advances to state record 17th final four
TIFFIN » Another regional final game, another fundamentally sound performance in all phases of the game from Keystone’s softball team.
The Wildcats jumped ahead early and never looked back in an 8-2 win against Defiance in the Division II Tiffin Region final on May 26, earning another trip to the D-II state semifinals — their 17th as a program and fourth in the last four years.
Keystone will play Lancaster Fairfield Union at 12:30 p.m. on May 31 in a D-II state semifinal at Akron’s Firestone Stadium. The winner advances to the state final on
June 2 against either Beloit West Branch or Plain City Jonathan Alder.
Junior Autumn Acord, freshman Madi Herrington and senior Brooke Piazza each had two RBI, with seniors Summer Metcalf and Madi Nunez both contributing one RBI as Keystone (32-0) got to Defiance pitcher Teya Castillo early for five runs in the first two innings to establish a 5-0 lead.
Keystone coach Jim Piazza told his team before the game that they would score first, and then they’d score again.
“I said if we could score five runs, we should be in good shape with Sydney Campbell and our defense,” he said. “And they followed it, and you could see the confidence build because our gameplan came through.”
Three Keystone batters — Nunez, Metcalf and fellow senior Val Broschk — had two or more hits, junior pitcher Sydney Campbell pitched seven solid innings, and the Wildcat defense was error-free in the field behind her.
It gave Campbell, 27-0 this year, breathing room with her pitches, but she rarely needed it. She allowed six hits in seven innings of work on the mound with four strikeouts, no walks and two earned runs. It wasn’t until the sixth inning that Campbell got her first strikeout, sitting down sophomore Jordan Davis for the final out of the inning before she came back out in the seventh and struck out the side to end the game.
“(Defiance) is a great hitting team. I told Sydney before the game, ‘You’re not going to get a lot of strikeouts. Your defense has your back.’ They did a great job having her back like they did all year,” Piazza said. “As you get farther (in the postseason) teams are going to put the ball in play more, and she kept the ball down and on the ground, and our defense made the plays.”
“We just tried to keep them off-balance and make sure they weren’t expecting a pitch going into the at-bat,” said Campbell. “My defense helped a lot, and I gained a lot of confidence, because I knew if they hit it hard, my defense would make the plays and get the outs.”
Defiance coach Dennis Parrish said his team has hit well all year, but they couldn’t string together timely hits like they did in a 9-5 win in a regional semifinal against Mansfield Madison.
“(Campbell) threw well and we didn’t get the big hits like we had been,” he said. “That’s a program there. This is my third year here and this is the second time I’ve had to face them, that’s what you’re trying to get there.”
Keystone, ranked No. 1 in the Coaches Association poll, opened with the game’s first two runs when Acord and Nunez hit backto-back singles with two outs, and Brooke Piazza ripped a line-drive to the outfield that was misplayed to score both baserunners. Piazza’s double was originally scored as a fielding error before it was changed.
The Wildcats punished Defiance for even the slightest defensive miscues.
In the bottom of the second inning, Ali Pyles ripped a double into left field, and Metcalf followed with a single to left to bring her home for a 3-0 lead. Four batters later, with two runners on base and two outs, Acord hit a sharp grounder back up the middle that got under shortstop Carlee Smiddy’s glove to bring in two more runs.
“We needed more momentum. We kind of died down after we scored the first two runs, so it was great to help the team out and get two more RBI on the board,” Acord said. “It feels great that we’re so together as a team — that if Sydney gives up a hit we’re there to back her up, or vice versa, if we give up an error, our bats will pick us up. We’re so put together this year.”
With two outs in the bottom of the fourth and leading, 5-1, Herrington brought Metcalf across home on an infield hit that Smiddy couldn’t field cleanly.
“When you get to this level and you have (two) errors, it’s not a good thing,” Parrish said. “Give credit to them. They were hard hit balls and our girls didn’t field them. That’s part of the game at this level and they took advantage of them.”
Herrington and Nunez added RBI singles for an 8-1 lead in the bottom of the sixth inning.
Castillo had an RBI double in the top of the third inning to bring in Defiance’s first run. The Bulldogs only managed three hits the rest of the game, two of those coming in the seventh inning with the game seemingly in the Wildcats’ hands. Smiddy singled in the other run for the Bulldogs, who lost to the Keystone in the regional tournament for the second time in three seasons.
“I’m so excited to be back there for a third year in a row,” Campbell said of making it back to Akron. “I think I’m more prepared this year than I’ve ever been, and I think everyone is prepared and relaxed going in. I think this is the year.”