The last game of the season has certainly not been kind to the heartstrings of the Perryville softball program. One year after falling to Notre Dame in the district championship game and giving up four runs in the final inning, Perryville suffered a similar fate on Thursday.
Bowling Green scored two runs in the bottom of the seventh, which included a crucial error that scored the winning run, handing Perryville a 8-7 loss in the Class 3 quarterfinal.
“We know how to lose in dramatic fashion,” Wengert said. “The last two years we’ve went into the last inning with a lead and literally watched it slip away. They’ve been hard pills to swallow.”
Perryville entered the seventh inning with a 7-6 lead and Alyson Stortz got the first two outs of the inning. Then Bowling Green lead-off hitter Kennedy Grimsley tied the game with a home run to right center field that tied the game at 7-7. A single up the middle by Meredyth Betts went off Perryville shortstop Brittanie Stewart glove. The next batter, Jade Meier hit a fly ball to center, that was dropped allowing the winning run to score.
“It’s like that moment went by in slow motion,” Wengert said of the error. “I watched it hit the glove and fall to the ground. To some degree I still can’t believe it.”
That error culminated what was a messy game for Perryville, a rather sure-gloved defense. The Pirates committed five errors in the game.
The first run for Bowling Green was helped by a miscue as well. Betts attempted to move up Grimsley who singled to start the game, but the attempt was popped into the air and caught by third baseman Brooke Huber. The ensuing throw to first in an attempt to double off the runner sailed into right field. Grace Dameron made the Pirates pay with a single to score the first run of the game.
“Bowling Green was able to get big hits at big times, but so did we,” Wengert said.
Stortz and the defense settled into the game and kept Bowling Green scoreless, while the Perryville offense found their groove in the fourth inning.
Ann-Marie Simpson tripled to lead off the inning, then Katie Roberts reached on an infield single. Huber delivered with a single up the middle to score both runners and give Perryville a 2-1 advantage.
However they weren’t done there.
Stewart smashed a pitch to center for her first homerun of the season, scoring Huber and gave Perryville a 4-1 lead.
“Brittanie had been come so close to that home run multiple times this year, and to see her finally achieve it was something I won’t forget.” Wengert said.
Bowling Green showed off their power has well as they hit three home runs in the contest, and entered the quarterfinal with 18 homers on the season.
“I knew they had that kind of power, they hit three in the game that I came and scouted,” Wengert said. “I thought our pitching was a little better than what they had seen in their district title game. Alyson will be the first to tell you that she missed a few spots and when you do that against a good team, they will hit your mistakes.”
At the plate Huber led the way with two hits and three RBI while Stewart had two hits with a pair of RBI. Stortz pitched a complete game, surrendering nine hits, eight runs (two earned) with nine strikeouts. However, the Perryville pitcher found some trouble in the bottom half of the inning. Stortz gave up three hits and the Pirates committed an error, all with two outs, as Bowling Green answered with four runs in the inning to take a 5-4 lead. The inning included a triple and a two run homerun by Kaelynn Wommack. The Wildcats scored seven of their eight runs with two outs.
“We just couldn’t get that shutout inning,” Wengert said. “Every time we would take a lead, they had an answer.”
Perryville had an answer for Bowling Green in the next inning when Makayla Pecaut doubles and Roberts reached base with a single. Huber again came up big with a two run single., giving Perryville a 6-5 lead.
Bowling Green tied the game, with another home run, this time by Meier in the fifth.
Katie Roberts gave Perryville its final lead with an infield hit that scored Katie Burns in the sixth inning.
Perryville will graduate six seniors.
“This team means everything to me,” Wengert said. “Everyone filled their roles perfectly and there was such leadership by these seniors that I didn’t have to worry too much about things outside of softball.”
Bowling Green (19-7) will travel to Sullivan (19-9) on Saturday for the Class 3 state semifinal. Sullivan defeated Logan-Rogersville (27-6) to advance.
To be there at the end with a chance is all you can ask for,” Wengert said.
