WINNEMUCCA - A season ago, the Lowry High School softball team fell a game short of winning its second state championship, with a loss to Churchill County at Hixson Park on the campus of the University of Nevada.
Fast forward 51 weeks later and the two schools will see each other again, this time in a semifinal matchup of the Division I-A North Regional Championship Friday in Winnemucca.
The Lady Bucks, the No. 2 seed in the tournament, kept their season going this past Friday with 10-0 and 2-0 victories over Dayton in Winnemucca.
"I expected two tough games," said LHS head coach Ty Lucas. "I thought we had the toughest matchup of the four play-in games. Dayton has a nice pitcher that can hit spots. We pressed a bit at times in the second game and were trying to make things happen instead of letting it come to us. The bottom line is we got it done. Any win right now is a good one. When it comes to the playoffs, you can't take anything for granted. You have to do whatever to grind wins out."
Lowry dominated both matchups as Dayton had just six runners reach base and just one made it to third base. Jordan Mecham struck out 20 batters and allowed four hits in the two games for the Lady Bucks.
In the opening game of the play-in series, Lowry broke a scoreless tie in the bottom of the third inning, with Shelby McKinnon beginning the rally by reaching on an error by Dayton third baseman Mallory Dickerson. The sophomore speedster proceeded to steal second and third base and scored on an error by the Dust Devils' Kalee Alexander.
The Lady Bucks added a second run after Ere Higbee singled with one out. Higbee made her way around the bases on the wildness of Dayton pitcher Makyla Shadle. Shadle threw a passed ball and two wild pitches to the next Lowry batters, allowing Higbee to cross home plate and make the score 2-0.
The Lady Bucks pushed the advantage to 5-0 in the bottom of the fourth inning, as Jaecee Munger led off the frame by reaching on an error by Dayton in the outfield. Two batters later, Lexie Coleman followed with a RBI single and Carli Evatz finished off the inning with a two-out, two-RBI single.
Lowry (24-10 overall, 13-1 Division I-A North, 12-2 Ruby Mountain) tacked on two runs in the fifth innings starting with a leadoff single by Kylee McClellan. The Lady Bucks then took advantage of the Dust Devils' sixth and seventh errors of the game off the bats of Munger and Allison Barron.
The top of the Lowry lineup closed the game out one inning early on the 10-run mercy rule with three runs in the sixth inning. McKinnon led off with a double and scored after Shadle committed an error with Higbee at the plate. McClellan made the score 9-0 with her triple and Alyssa Dendary ended the game with a single to bring home McClellan for the 10-run victory.
Dayton did not have a batter reach base until the fourth inning, which game on an error and picked up its only hit in the sixth inning, a single by Clarice Cerda. Mecham struck out nine and walked none.
McClellan led Lowry with two hits, two runs scored and a RBI. McKinnon, Evatz, Higbee, Dendary and Coleman each had one hit.
Game two turned into a pitching duel between Mecham and Shadle. The duo combined for 21 strikeouts in the matchup, with Mecham accounting for 11 strikeouts.
"Jordan looked strong and she is right where we want her to be for this time of the year," Lucas said. "She had developed this season to be peaking at this time of the year. We want her to be hitting her full stride right now."
Lowry took an early 1-0 lead in the first inning, as Evatz singled with one out and advanced to second base after a sacrifice by Higbee. Evatz then stole second base and scored after an errant throw by Alexander, the Dust Devils' catcher.
"When the hits are not coming, I like that the girls are doing their jobs to manufacture runs," said the coach. "You have to do whatever it takes to get the run in and get the win. The girls are working hard and that is paying off for them."
The Lady Bucks were able to put runners on base throughout the game, but saw rallies end in the third and fifth innings on double plays.
Dayton was held at bay on offense and did not have a batter reach base until a single by Shadle in the fifth inning. She was left stranded on second base. The Dust Devils picked up singles in the sixth and seventh innings but never threatened to score.
Lowry tacked on an insurance run in the bottom of the sixth inning, as Taylor Schwartz scored on a wild pitch. The junior led off the frame with a walk and moved over to third base after a single by McKinnon. The Lady Bucks attempted to score Schwartz on a suicide squeeze by Evatz, but her bunt went just foul. Shadle was wild on the next, allowing Schwartz to score.
"We made a couple of mistakes on the bases, but our defense is there to back us up when we need it," added the coach. "We have been solid on defense all year."
Mecham earned the win, allowing
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three hits to go with her 11 strikeouts. McKinnon, Evatz, Munger and Coleman each had one hit.
The Division I-A North Regional Championships begin Friday in Winnemucca, with Elko taking on Fernley at 10 a.m. Lowry and Churchill County take to the field at noon. The losers game will begin at 2 p.m. and the two winners close out the day at 4 p.m. The championship is set for noon on Saturday.
"It's going to be a battle all weekend," Lucas said. "There are going to be two quality teams staying home from the state tournament. The road to state comes through Lowry and the girls are excited about that. We are tough to beat on our home field. The only game that matters is the first against Fallon. We are going to work hard in practice and get after it all week."
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