Blogging Game 1 of the WCWS Championship (6/1)
Blogging Game 1 of the WCWS Championship (6/1)
Florida beat Michigan during the regular season—shoot, outside the SEC they went an amazing 34-0 so they beat everyone – but both times went undefeated in the World Series to this point and, with All-Americans all over the field this game, this showdown promised to be exciting.
I decided to blog through the game and share my thoughts… so here we go!
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1st Inning:
* Wow, surprised that Lele Ocasio is starting Game 1 of the best-of-three series, especially since she hasn’t pitched since May 15 in a game, but Lauren Haeger has pitched a ton in the last three games… we’ll see how the freshman does, but you have to like her aggressiveness right out of the game.
Got Sierra Romero out and the two-out didn’t hurt her. What I’ve always liked about Lele is she is cool under pressure. Remember that she pitched in two Florida high school state title games at Harmony High and even though both were 1-0 losses, Ocasio was clutch. She looks on tonight.
* Florida up and speed kills. Kelsey Stewart is so fast the Michigan infielder couldn’t set and plant her feet so the throw bounces and it’s suddenly a runner on second. Where was the back-up though? Right-fielder? Catcher?
* I saw Haeger at the Judi Garman Classic earlier this year and I couldn’t believe how easily she swung the bat. She’s 5-foot-11 and so strong, the bat looks too small in her hands and this is a great at-bat. Coming up to pitch 12 in the at-bat and you sense this is going to be a key moment of the game.
… and there it goes. Haeger is incredible, the change was low and she looked fooled a bit, but still powered it out. I didn’t think it was a bad pitch, but Haeger can crush anything close. Michigan’s worst case scenario: down 2-0 already.
* Megan Betsa had an All-American year, but she looks shaky and not confident. Unlike Ocasio, Betsa doesn’t look comfortable.
2nd Inning:
* You’d never guess that Lele is a freshman, she continues to pitch in a groove. Gives up another two-out hit, but works out of it. She’s nicely mixing up rises and drops and isn’t blowing the ball by many, but is using her defense well… one pitch, one out gets you out of innings quickly.
* Is it me or is hard to follow the commentary… how many announcers are in the booth, 12? I look Curt Shilling talking baseball, but his asking questions and constant comparisons to baseball are distracting to me.
* Betsa looks to have settled down and this could be a good pitcher-s duel now.
3rd Inning:
* Sierra Romero singles up the middle on a 3-1 count… stays on the ball well and you can see why she’s so good: she adjusts as well as anyone in the game.
* Christner flies out and it’s quickly two-down. Tempo still going Ocasio’s way, she’s pitching quickly and efficiently and on a 2-2 count gets a fly-out to end the inning.
* One-pitch, one out for Betsa but Nicole DeWitt does a nice job lifting a ball into centerfield for a hit. Here comes Haeger… oh boy.
Haeger drills a shot to the ball and DeWitt scores from first and it’s Lauren Haeger 3, Michigan 0. The pitch was low and a way—again, a good pitch—and Haeger gets her third RBI of the game and already has a home run and double. Yeesh.
* Merritt gets hit—barely—on the elbow and with one out and runners on first and second, this game could suddenly get away quickly from Michigan. Critical, critical point of this game…
* Kayla Kvistad grounds out but Bailey Castro walks. Bases loaded and Wolverine Head Coach Carol Hutchins has seen enough: pitching change. Did I already say this is a critical point of this game?
* Haylie Wagner comes in and gets a weak pop-up to the catcher and Michigan fans breathe a sign of relief. Until Haeger comes up again…
4th Inning:
* First batter for Michigan flies out to left and Ocasio continues to use her defense effectively behind her.
* A one-out walk… can Michigan get something going?
* Pitcher Haylie Wagner has an elbow guard that looks like a football lineman’s knee guard. Surprised she can even flex her arm with that thing on. She goes down for out two.
* Cool piece on Jennie Ritter and the other champion players of the 2005 Michigan title team writing letters to this year’s team to pump them up. And there’s Jennie is in the stands… she’s now working at Louisville Slugger running softball and I’m excited to work with her for the Louisville Slugger Hit Club this summer (shameless plug).
* Ground out to third and Michigan goes down again.
* Hutch speaks candidly saying the Wolverines are playing tentatively and “playing the team (Florida) on the front of the jersey.” The Wolverine head coach says of her team “They’re going to show up or they’ll lose.”
* Aubrey Munro’s grounder to short is mishandled by Ramirez, her second error of the game. The first one came in on the Haeger home run, will this one come back to hurt again?
* Stewart shot down the line could have been a double but is handled for out No. 2. Still, there’s a runner in scoring position and a Nicole DeWitt hit could score the 4th run.
…. nope, a great fielding play by third baseman Lindsay Montemarano who also caught a bunt attempt earlier in the inning, closes the door and the score heading into the final three innings remains 3-0.
5th Inning:
* A game recap coming back from commercial shows great production by ESPN… they’ve obviously invested a lot of resources as they should: when I was at ESPN in 2009-2012, the WCWS had higher TV ratings than almost all other championships including NHL playoffs.
* Great point by Jessica Mendoza: Michigan wants to be aggressive but that’s muted by off-speed stuff by Lele. Paradoxically, the more you attack, the more susceptible you are to change-ups and off-speed stuff.
* Hmmmm, things get interested as Sierra Lawrence walks but on the first pitch a bullet is fielded cleanly by Kathlyn Medina and quickly it’s out No. 2. But… Kelly Christner is up and the threat isn’t over.
… now, it is. A line-drive to first and Michigan leaves another runner on base.
* And, now with Florida on offense, Lauren Haeger leads off the inning. Wagner is a lefty so let’s see if that makes a difference. It does, as Haeger grounds weakly to second on a curveball inside.
Wagner kept coming inside on Haeger and didn’t give her anything to drive; the Wolverine pitcher ends the inning on a strikeout and is really rolling. But is it too late?
6th Inning:
* Kelsey Susalla hits the first pitch to the outfield and you get the feeling this could be Michigan’s last chance.
And just like that Lauren Sweet is hit by a pitch and the first two runners are on.
* A flyout to right and Susalla smartly gets to third so even on an out Michigan could get on the board.
* Ohhhh, Wagner came about five feet from tying the game on a cruched drive down the left field line that is just foul! Michigan had 118 home runs to lead the nation and that one would have been huge. Instead, she pops up to Stewart at second on a 66 mph pitch by Ocasio that hammed Wagner on the hands.
* Tera Blanco walks on a 3-2 count and the bases are loaded… will Coach Walton make a change?
Nope… it’s going to be Ocasio and Abby Ramirez slaps a two-run single up the middle. Score now: 3-2 and it’s a whole new game with the top of the order now up.
Two outs and Sierra Lawrence and on a 2-and-2 count she hits a shot that looks like it could be a three-run homer, but is caught on the warning track. Whew, what a great inning and you have to feel good for Ramirez, who had two errors at short earlier, but put Michigan right back in the game.
Still, they only have one inning left to come from behind.
* First pitch in the bottom of the 6th and Bailey Castro gets hit and is on first for the Gators.
A one-out sacrifice moves the runner to second and there are two outs with pinch hitter Briana Little up. She flies weakly to the pitcher and now it’s on… the heart of the Michigan order is up. Do or die time.
7th Inning:
* Pticher Delanie Gourley comes in. She’s 10-2 for the season but throws her second pitch over Sierra Romero’s head. Ummm…. The count goes 3-0, but she did win the deciding game last year in the WCWS so Gourley isn’t new to pressure.
I’ll always remember Gourley for her tremendous pitching run in the 2013 PGF Nationals when she almost single-handedly win the title for the So Cal A’s.
But in this game she starts off the top of the 7th with a 3-and-2 walk to Romero.
Oh boy… this is getting good!
* Kelly Christner is up and, with a 1-1 count, a passed ball allows Romero to get to second, putting the tying run in scoring position. A Gourley rise ball is fouled off making the count 2-and-2.
A beautiful piece of hitting as Christner knocks the pitch into right field… Romero holds at third and Coach Hutchins is smiling!
* No outs and runners on first and third but a hard hit by Susalla to short gets a force at second—almost a double play—but Romero stays put at third. One out.
* Sweet is up and Gourley gets the count to 1-2… she throws two very high rise balls and Sweet comes inches from swinging for strike three but holds back. Barely!
But Gourley does throw a beautiful backdoor curveball for strike three… two down and on the first pitch Montemarano grounds out to short and it’s over.
FINAL: 3-2, but Wolverine fans will remember that the tying run was on third with no outs but failed to tie it. Ouch.
Credit Coach Walton who held back his ace and went with Lele Ocasio and Delaney Gourley to a Game 1 win.
But the Game MVP was Lauren Haeger who accounted for all three runs for the Gators.
…. now onto Tuesday and Game 2!
— Brentt Eads