Kicking up dirt
Junior SS Viar triples twice as Lockport downs Andrew for regional title
In the biggest game of her high school career, Lockport junior Sarah Viar came up huge in two different ways.
First, she was Sweet Swinging Sarah with a game-tying triple.
Then, she was Dr. Viar, helping Brooke Keltner follow her hitting lead.
“She had made outs in her previous two at-bats,” Viar said. “I could tell on her face that she could use some confidence. I just told her to keep her hands above the ball.”
Her advice paid off Friday as the host Porters beat Andrew 4-1 in the Class 4A Lockport Regional championship game.
Viar finished with two triples for Lockport (29-7). Addison Foster had three hits, while Keltner stroked what would be the winning single. Kelcie McGraw stuck out seven for the pitching win.
MaTaia Lawson had two hits for Andrew (24-9). Maddie Hanik added an RBI single, while Kathleen Hester struck out eight.
The Porters will play LincolnWay East (27-4) at 4:30 p.m. Wednesday in a Lockport Sectional semifinal.
Viar changed the momentum of the game in a big way in the bottom of the fifth.
The Porters trailing were 1-0 as she came to the plate with teammate Addison Foster on first base with two outs. Viar responded with an RBI triple to the fence in right field.
It was Viar’s fourth triple of the season and her second for the day. Speedy Sarah?
“Umm, no,” Viar said with a laugh. “Usually when I hit a triple, it’s a ball that’s down the line and gets by them. I guess I dropped the fridge off my back (Friday).”
Keltner followed with a line single up the middle to put the Porters on top.
“The energy was crazy,” Keltner said. “I mean, kudos to (Sarah). She called me over when the other team called timeout. She got my head right.
“The energy she carries is beyond anything. I had a job and I executed. I knew what I had to do, and I did my job.”
Lockport pulled away in the bottom of the sixth on a two-run triple by Foster that drove in Ava Swain and Giuliana Giordano.
McGraw, meanwhile, recovered from a shaky first inning to blank the Thunderbolts over the last six. She allowed just one base runner in the final three innings.
“I was a little nervous, but we’ve come from behind many times,” McGraw said. “I wasn’t really worried. I knew my defense would have my back and we’d come through with the hits later on.”
Viar, a shortstop, has put up impressive numbers in her first full varsity season. The McKendree commit is batting .475 with 38 runs, 14 doubles and 29 RBIs.
From start to finish, she has been chasing Foster for top batting average on the team.
“We actually started playing together since we were in 8U,” Viar said. “So we’ve been together forever. Her and I work so well together. We always bounce off each other.
“Definitely, her swing, the way she can barrel up that ball and hit anything up the middle, I look up to her for sure.”
A year ago, Viar was a late-season call-up who played in situations without the spotlight.
Now, she handles those scenarios with aplomb.
“I have always thought of softball as a game,” Viar said. “I think that’s the key. A lot of people put pressure on themselves, but at the end of the day, in my head, it’s just a game.
“Softball has brought me so many friends and so many great opportunities. If I put pressure on myself, I know that’s when I’m not going to succeed. So knowing it’s just a game, it brings me a lot of confidence.”