By Dana Harding (For OzarksSportsZone.com)
Republic, Mo. — If there’s been a run on blood-pressure medication this week in Republic, blame the softball team.
Just two days after rallying for nine runs in the final innings to down Nixa, the Lady Tigers pulled off some more late-inning magic with an 8-7 walk-off victory over Webb City.
Facing an 0-2 count with two runners on, Julia Higgins shot a laser over the right-center wall and sent the home crowd into hysterics.
Turns out it’s the fourth time that’s the charm in Republic.
Prior to her final plate appearance, the senior catcher had racked up a disappointing 0-3 performance with three lazy fly balls into the outfield.
“The first three at-bats, I wasn’t really mentally ready,” Higgins said. “I went up there and I was looking at pitches; I was swinging high, and I wasn’t very selective, but the last one — I knew our team needed it.”
Higgins’ blast drove in Kaitlyn Ragsdale and Megan Weis, who reached base on a bunt-single and a walk.
With a pair of speedsters on the basepaths, no outs and his power hitters coming up, Republic head coach Lee Dishman had reason to feel optimistic — particularly with the sophomore Ragsdale leading off in the final frame.
“When Kaitlyn leads off an inning late in the game like that, and we’re down, we’re really confident with it,” Dishman said. “She can run, she can bunt and she can hit, so when you’ve got Rags going — she’s our leader, and she’s our spark plug — she just got it done.”
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Once Ragsdale and Weis were on the bases, the stage was set.
For Republic pitcher Avery Romans, the outcome wasn’t open to chance.
“Before she even hit it, I said ‘She’s going to walk it off right here,’” Romans said. “I just had a feeling.”
The sophomore right-hander’s hunch paid off in spades, as Higgins made solid contact.
“Oh my goodness it felt good,” Higgins said. “I knew it was a good hit, and then I saw it go out. It was so exciting, and I think that’s the fastest I’ve run the bases all season.”
Early on, it seemed Republic might not need a furious comeback.
After opening up the first inning with a leadoff single and stolen base, Ragsdale scored from second on a throwing error.
The lead was short-lived, however, as Webb City came storming back with a trio of runs in both the third and fourth innings.
Lady Cardinals pitcher Haidyn Berry helped her own cause in the fourth, punctuating Webb City’s rally with a three-run blast to center.
In the circle, Berry proved to be equally effective.
The sophomore right-hander allowed only a single hit through the first four innings before getting into trouble in the fifth.
Sophomore second baseman Emma White drew a two-out walk, followed by a bunt-single from Ragsdale to give Republic its first threat since the opening frame.
After a passed ball moved the pair into scoring position, Weis scored both with a double.
Webb City answered with an insurance run in the sixth.
Junior second baseman Darcy Darnell’s two-out single scored senior third baseman Ali VanZant, but the Lady Cardinals were unable to completely turn the momentum.
Republic picked up two more runs in the sixth off senior third baseman Livi Collier’s solo home run and an RBI from junior right fielder Riley Laub.
Dishman attributed his team’s late success to a patient approach at the plate.
“We laid off the rise ball pretty well tonight,” Dishman said. “Hat’s off to [Berry]. She kept pounding the zone, and we kept hitting it right at them. She dominated for a stretch of innings, and then we caught some luck.”
While Berry labored through the latter innings, Romans managed to find her groove as the game wore on.
Having a play-making defense at her back didn’t hurt, either.
“I was behind in the first couple innings, but my defense was behind me,” Romans said. “I knew they were there the whole time, and I just had to throw it somewhere over the plate where they could hit it and make plays behind me, because I trust them with all my heart.”
Romans allowed ten hits and seven runs in the contest, yet Dishman praised the sophomore’s competitiveness.
“She’s been really consistent for us lately but, tonight, she just didn’t have it,” Dishman said. “She couldn’t hit a spot and didn’t have all of her pitches working but, one thing about Avery, she’s going to compete for you.”
Ragsdale notched a 3-4 performance at the plate and scored three times. Higgins and Weis led the team in RBIs with three and two, respectively.
“Our team’s relatively young, still, so they’re kind of young and dumb,” Dishman said. “They don’t know any better when they get into these tight situations. They’re going to go out and play loose, and they’re going to get it done. As soon as we got the first two runners on — with our three, four and five coming up — we felt pretty confident.”
For Webb City head coach Shauna Friend, the solid performance from her team came up just short due to a host of missed opportunities.
“I felt like our girls were hitting the ball well,” Friend said. “We did leave a few too many runners on base. A few timely hits to increase the lead we had … that would have helped us down the stretch.”
While Higgins’ walk-off rewrote the game’s storyline, Friend was quick to point out the fact one play does not determine a game’s outcome.
“You can’t hang a loss on one hit, by any means,” Friend said. “Give credit to [Higgins]. She had a great hit there at the end, but we did some things early on that could have saved us a few runs, defensively.”
Following a quick turnaround, both teams are set for weekend tournament play beginning Friday, Sept. 28. Republic (15-2) heads east for the Springfield Invitational, while Webb City (14-6) travels north for the Blue Springs Tournament.
The win also puts Republic into the driver’s seat in both the Central Ozark Conference Large Division and Class 4 District 11 races.
The Lady Tigers (7-0) face Ozark (7-1) on Tuesday, Oct. 2, and then finish up conference play with a makeup game against Carl Junction on Thursday, Oct. 4.
Varsity final: Republic – 8, Webb City – 7
Webb City 0 0 3 3 0 1 0 — 7
Republic 1 0 0 0 2 2 3 — 8
Hits: Webb City – 10, Republic – 6
Errors: Webb City – 3, Republic – 2
LOB: Webb City – 9, Republic – 4
2B: Webb City – 2 (Gillmore, Tyndall), Republic – 1 (Weis)
HR: Webb City – 1 (Berry), Republic – 2 (Collier, Higgins)
Webb City Pitching
Haidyn Berry (6.00 IP, 3K, 6H, 3BB)
Republic Pitching
Avery Romans (7.00 IP, 1K, 10H, 2BB, 1HBP)
Time of game: 1:40
