Snohomish softball falls in the 3A state semifinal

LACEY — Heading into the top of the seventh inning at Regional Athletic Complex on Saturday, Snohomish softball trailed 3-2 against Liberty in the 3A State semifinals.

With the top of the order coming to bat, the Panthers had three outs to keep their season alive and give themselves a chance to return to the state championship game, which they lost in each of the past two seasons.

“We want this! We deserve this,” sophomore Maddy Larsen said in the huddle.

Freshman Amelie Lopez went down 0-2 in the count to lead off the inning. In the on-deck circle, junior Abby Edwards turned to her teammates in the dugout.

“Let’s go, right now,” Edwards said. “Have each other’s back, let’s go.”

The energy picked up again. In each of their at-bats, Lopez, Edwards and senior Hannah Siegler put the ball in play, but the first two lined out before Siegler grounded out to third to end the game. The third time would not be the charm for the No. 10 seed Panthers (19-9), who fell 3-2 to the No. 6 seed Patriots (20-9).

A two-time reigning state finalist falling short in the semifinals could be considered a disappointment, but for a team where underclassmen outnumber upperclassmen 12-5, making it this far as the 10th seed felt significant. When asked is she expected such a young group to make it back to the state semifinals heading into the season, coach Patti Lande shook her head ‘no’ before the question even finished.

“To have young kids experience it, and they’re not just here watching from the dugout, they’re out there. And they’re experiencing this pressure and how different it is here compared to, you know, their select seasons or anything like that. So yeah, it’s absolutely huge,” Lande said.

After earning a state berth, the goal for Snohomish was to reach the second day of the tournament, and they did that with a 4-1 win against No. 7 seed Gig Harbor and a nail-biting 1-0 victory against No. 18 Inglemoor in the quarterfinals. But against the Patriots on Saturday, defensive errors ultimately cost them. Liberty’s first two runs were scored via passed ball and wild pitch, and the winning run came across on a fielding error.

On top of that, the Patriots stole bases at will to get into scoring position, and their pitcher Avery Huh made life difficult with nine strikeouts and only five hits allowed.

“We couldn’t lay off changeups that weren’t strikes, so that was a bit rough,” Edwards said. “Swinging at pitches that weren’t even close to the strike zone, I mean. They looked really good out of her hand, but then they were just, like, dropping to the dirt and just not great pitches to hit.”

After Liberty took an immediate 1-0 lead in the bottom of the first, with leadoff hitter Kaila Siu reaching on an infield single and later scoring from third on a passed ball, Lande was quick to refocus her group heading into the second.

“One run, keep it together. We got this,” Lande said to her team in a quick huddle.

With one out, the Panthers put two runners on base — one via walk and the other by error — to set up Lopez (2-for-3, 1 RBI). The shortstop made contact down the third base line, the ball bouncing off the Liberty third baseman’s glove and into foul territory, allowing Larsen (0-for-1, 1 R) to score.

“I don’t think (when I’m) at bat,” Lopez said. “I just go up there and I’m just in my own space, and that helps me a lot, because when I’m in my head, then I don’t do that good.”

After a successful bunt from sophomore Sydney Witherow (0-for-0, SH) moved Siegler (2-for-4, R) to third in the top of the third inning, Snohomish took a 2-1 lead with a sacrifice fly from freshman Taylor Ward (0-for-2, 1 RBI), but Liberty scored its second run on a wild pitch to tie it 2-2 in the bottom of the frame. The Patriots put runners on second and third, but Edwards (6.0 IP, 6 H, 3 R, 3 BB, 9 K; 1-for-4) got out of the inning with a strikeout.

Liberty took the lead again on another defensive mistake by the Panthers. With runners on first and second after Edwards hit Isabella Rockey with a pitch on a 1-2 count, Huh hit a ball up the middle to Lopez. Lopez wasn’t able to try for the inning-ending force out at second, and by the time she threw home to try and get lead runner Mikayla Kato instead, she slid in to score.

“I underestimated it,” Lopez said. “Thought it was, like, right there. Wasn’t though.”

A retooling season that went better than expected is in the books. The disappointment quickly turned into optimism for next year. Even with all the mistakes, the Panthers were only a couple of runs away from returning to the state championship game. Lande and her players are focusing on how that experience will only help the team, which will return all but three graduating seniors.

“Our motto has been ‘One pitch at a time, one hit at a time,’” Lande said. “I really feel like they gave their entire heart. It’s just the other team is better today.

“Just by a little bit.”