Thursday, May 21, 2009
Tension high in Byrd's softball semifinals loss to Alleghany
An umpire reverses a call in Alleghany's victory, while the Vikings roll over the Cavaliers.
varsity.roanoke.com
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DALEVILLE -- Wednesday's Blue Ridge District softball semifinals at the Botetourt Sports Complex had totally different story lines. One game was a blowout, the other was an emotion-filled, one-run cliffhanger.
While regular-season champion Northside pummeled Lord Botetourt 10-0, Alleghany nipped William Byrd 3-2 in a controversial decision that stirred emotions to the point that Botetourt County police were summoned to make certain the umpiring crew could safely exit.
The tension was sparked after Byrd coach Greg Barton and the Terriers' followers were distraught about an umpiring decision in which the home-plate umpire overruled a base umpire's decision -- a reversal that led to a run that gave the Mountaineers a 2-0 lead in the bottom of the sixth inning.
"And the guy looks at me and says, 'Sorry about that,' " Barton said. "That wasn't right."
Wither her team leading 1-0, Alleghany's Kasey McAllister led off with a liner to the gap. She tried to stretch it into a double, and was called out at second base by the nearest base umpire. The home-plate umpire, who saw a different angle from his position in the middle of the diamond, overturned the call after the crew huddled for a bit.
"To me, that's a bang-bang play, the call was made, and what's the question?" Barton said of the reversal.
After advancing to third, McAllister scored what appeared to a critical insurance run on a rundown following a wild pitch, in which Byrd third baseman Amber Altice's throw to the catcher hit the runner.
Byrd, however, rallied in its last at-bat in the top of the seventh. Byrd tied the score on an one-out RBI double by Sarah Ashby and Jessica Mahoney's two-out RBI single.
In the bottom of the seventh, after two outs, Alleghany speedster Doin'a Jeter reached on a throwing error by Byrd shortstop Brittany Mattox. After stealing second, Jeter attempted to steal third, but catcher Danielle Powell's peg was dropped by Altice. Jeter then sprinted for the plate, where Powell misplayed Altice's throw and allowed the winning run to score.
"We dropped the ball twice," Barton said. "We beat [Jeter] both times. We had two outs and we dropped it.
"But that wasn't the game. We had runners on third three times and didn't get them in. We just didn't make some plays we should have made."
Byrd, which wasted a 14-strikeout, four-hit complete game by Mahoney, will now have to beat Lord Botetourt in Friday's third-place game to make the Region III tournament. The Terriers and the Cavaliers will face off at 5:30 p.m. Friday at the Botetourt Sports Complex.
"We're going to win Friday. The only difference is we've got to travel" in the regionals, Barton said.
Northside, which has won the league tournament 10 consecutive years, will face Alleghany in the championship at the same time.
Catcher Hollee Warlitner, who is bound for Virginia Tech in the fall, had two of Alleghany's four hits. Her fifth-inning single gave her team a 1-0 lead.
"When they pitch to [Warlitner], I always like it," said Alleghany coach Ty Dobbs, whose club is now assured of making the regional.
Sophomore Lauren Boitnott's one-hitter carried Northside. She struck out 11. Botetourt's only hit was Lindsey Cuba's single in the fourth.
Boitnott had two hits. Veronica Blankenship had three hits and Samantha Barney had two hits for the Vikings, who scored three times in the fourth and five in the fifth and rolled.
Lord Botetourt 000 000 0 -- 0
Northside 200 350 x -- 10
Barton and Poehner; Boitnott and Carr. W-- Boitnott. L-- Barton.
William Byrd 000 000 2 -- 2
Alleghany 000 011 1 -- 3
Mahoney and Powell; Smith, Kimberlin (7) and Warlitner. W-- Kimberlin. L-- Mahoney.
