It was a busy week for the Lady Hitters as they successfully claimed two championships ? the MHSAA Softball District title on Tuesday and the MHSAA Softball Regional title on Saturday by taking out four teams in the running for the state championship.
It began Tuesday evening as they took out rivals Lake Orion after losing to them in the playoffs the past two years, 11-2.
‘It feels great,? said Clarkston Varsity Softball Head Coach Don Peters. ‘It was important we played Lake Orion and got by them. He has had a great program and great teams. They played us hard but that one inning we broke it open. It’s a great rivalry. Someone was talking to Dan Fife (Wolves? athletic director) and said we are lucky to have Lake Orion and Lake Orion is lucky to have us because it is such a cool rivalry and the girls play hard against each other.?
The Lady Wolves opened in the scoring in the bottom of the second inning with a run off a hit from Paige Blevins.
Lake Orion changed the tune when Rachel Doll hit a 2-run homerun at the top of the fourth inning to bring the Dragons into the leader.
Clarkston went up to the bat and Abby Skvarce made a hit and was out at first base.
Alex Favazza stepped up to the bat next and the game changed as she hit the ball over the fence for her homerun.
‘That was unexpected,? Favazza admitted after the game. ‘I was going up there and my mind set is always to hit a single. Think small – one pitch at a time and it just felt great straight off the bat. It was amazing. It definitely changed our mindsets of the game because we were down by one. Then, we tied and getting the other runs helped boost it. It started the rally for our team.?
‘It was a big difference,? said Peters. ‘Our theme this year is ‘we can, she can, I can? and she did. We had a lot of key plays and key hits.?
The Lady Wolves finished the inning with two more runs putting the score, 4-2.
The next inning for Clarkston hitters began with Mikayla Blaska hitting a triple. Candace Kitchen would follow it up with a single and one run, 5-3.
But it was the bottom of the sixth inning where the game ended for the Dragons as the Lady Wolves had six runs. Blaska hit another triple to bring in a runner. Then, with the bases loaded on two occasions Skvarce had one RBI and Favazza had two RBIs on her trip to the plate.
Hannah Chadwell and Blevins would bring in one RBI each before the inning closed, 11-3.
‘We went out and we wanted to get it done,? said Favazza. ‘We have had the same ‘We can, she can, I can? mindset all year. We did it for the team. We knew to go out there and play pitch by pitch and inning by inning. We just played our game.?
The girls opened the night against Waterford Mott to finish their postponed semifinal game from May 30. They won 3-0.
Kitchen pitched the shut out win with one hit. She also started against Lake Orion before Madeline Maday stepped in during the fifth inning.
‘The plan was to throw both of them,? said Peters. ‘It was just the amount of energy Candice had and how long she could last. Maday is a very confident pitcher and came in and got the job done. I have tremendous confidence in both of them.?
Favazza added going into the regionals the girls would continue this season’s theme.
‘It’s the same thing – we-she-I,? she said. ‘Everything one game at a time and one practice at a time. Just do what we know how to do.?
The girls went on to the beat Troy in the regional semifinals in the bottom of the seventh inning, 6-5. They moved on to play Romeo and claimed the championship with a 11-2 win.
The Lady Wolves (40-2) played Farmington Hills Mercy on Tuesday in the MHSAA Softball Quarterfinals. The winner moves on to the semifinals set for Thursday at Michigan State University, 3 p.m. and finals is Saturday at 12:30 p.m.