Snohomish alum grabs national attention at WCWS

For three days Trysten Melhart found herself at the center of the national softball story.

The Snohomish High School graduate and senior right fielder for the University of Washington softball team was one of the stars of this year’s Women’s College World Series in Oklahoma City, making two of the biggest defensive plays of the tournament as the Huskies finished as runners up.

“It was crazy,” Melhart said when reached Thursday. “I went to a couple press conferences and did some interviews, and I don’t usually get that kind of attention, it usually goes to the infielders and the power hitters. It was definitely different for me, but it was fun. I soaked it all in, talked about my experiences and how amazing my team is, it was fun.”

Fifth-seeded Washington finished 3-2 at this year’s Women’s College World Series, the Huskies won their first three games to reach the championship series, before dropping two straight to No. 6 Florida State, thus having to settle for the runner-up spot.

However, Washington may never have reached the championship series if not for the exploits of Melhart, who made two highlight-reel catches in eerily similar circumstances to save games for the Huskies.

The first catch came in Washington’s opener against defending-champion Oklahoma last Thursday. The Huskies were leading 2-0, but the Sooners had two on and two out in the bottom of the sixth inning when Shay Knighten sliced a liner down the right-field line. Melhart raced toward the line, dived and came up with the catch before the ball popped out as she got up. The umpires ruled that the ball came out during the transfer, thus making it an inning-ending out to preserve Washington’s lead. The Huskies went on to win 2-0.

Another look at the incredible grab by @UWSoftball's Trysten Melhart! #WCWS pic.twitter.com/1ifBrVPNZ4

— NCAA Softball (@NCAAsoftball) May 31, 2018

The second catch came two days later when Washington was again playing Oklahoma. This time the Huskies were leading 2-0 in the top of the fifth when the Sooners again put two runners on base with two out. Again Knighten came to the plate, and again she sent a liner to right. This time Melhart raced in at full speed, dived and snagged the ball just off the grass to again end the inning. The catch ended up as one of Sports Center’s Top 10 Plays of the day.

OH MY GOODNESS TRYSTEN MELHART 😱😱😱😱😱😱😱#WCWS pic.twitter.com/r3jssbLbdN

— NCAA Softball (@NCAAsoftball) June 3, 2018

“Both catches we about whether your instincts tell you to go catch the ball or pull back and wait for it to bounce,” Melhart said. “I knew I was going to have to make a play, whether it was throwing someone out or catching the ball. On the first one there were some questions about whether it was a catch. I can promise you it was, the ball flipped out on the transfer and I was glad the umpires made the right call. It was actually the same girl on both plays, too, so I felt kind of bad.”

Which catch was better?

“I personally kind of like the second one,” Melhart answered. “There was no question I caught it.”

Melhart managed to chip in offensively, too. The speedy slap hitter who bats toward the bottom of Washington’s lineup ended up scoring what proved to be the game-winning run in both the Huskies’ opener against Oklahoma and in Washington’s 6-2 victory over top-seeded Oregon in its second game last Friday. She finished the series 2-for-13 with two runs, one RBI and two walks.

This was Melhart’s second trip to the Women’s College World Series, as she was a starter for Washington’s team that reached the semifinals last year. While she said there were mixed emotions about going further, but falling short of the title, she was thrilled with the experience.

“This experience was so much more meaningful for me, being a senior,” said Melhart, who is graduating from Washington and will be pursuing a master’s degree in education. “This is my last year and I’m so proud of my teammates and coaches and all the support staff for being able to help us get to the World Series and go further than I’ve ever gone before. It was a cool experience, I was so glad both my parents were able to come this time, and it was a lot of fun. We laid it all on the line.”