Coming into this, our 8th game of the season, hopes were high for BLUR. We’ve fought and held our own against most of the teams in our division. We’ve played incredible defense so far. But, so far, we’ve also come up on the losing end of all of our previous games. This team was the 1st in the season that didn’t hand us a loss. In fact, our last meeting ended up in a tie. So, on paper, this would be the team that would potentially give us our easiest shot at a win so far this season. As the FIREBALL team was not a push-over in our last meeting, BLUR would have to play smart and play hard if they were going to break their streak. With the umpire calling a start to the game, it was time to see if BLUR could get over the hump and notch the 1st victory of the season.
1st Inning
As visitors in this game, the BLUR offense took to the field 1st. Rachel was up to lead us off in the game. Rachel hung tight with the FIREBALL pitcher as they traded back and forth until they reached full count. The next pitch hit the ground on the way in and Rachel got on base with a walk. Katelyn was up next. The pitcher drilled her 1st pitch right down the middle and caught Katelyn by surprise. No swing and the count was at 0 and 1. Katelyn took a swing and hit the ball into foul territory to add another strike to her collection. After another high pitch, Katelyn stayed alive on fouls. On the next pitch, the pitcher got Katelyn to swing, but with the ball just out of reach, Katelyn struck out. Lexie came to the plate next. A foul tip on the 1st pitch put Lexie behind in the count early. Lexie swung at the next pitch and missed, bringing up strike 2 as Rachel stole 2nd. Lexie fouled one off on the next pitch to stay alive. A high pitch came through and brought the count to 1 and 2 on Lexie, and then Lexie stayed alive on the next 3 pitches with foul balls. On the next pitch, Lexie made contact and sent the ball out into the FIREBALL outfield. As the FIREBALLS tried to recover the ball, Rachel rounded 3rd base and took a shot at home as the outfield threw the ball home. Rachel beat the throw to home and scored, putting BLUR on the board. On the throw, Lexie turned the corner at 1st and made it to 2nd on the steal. Hylah was up next. Holding the bat on the 1st pitch, Hylah misjudged the strike. She took a swing on the next pitch, but missed, bringing the count to 0 and 2. Swinging again, Hylah missed the 3rd pitch and struck out, but the ball got past the catcher and Lexie was able to steal 3rd and get herself into scoring position. Olivia came to the plate next. A low 1st pitch gave Olivia a 1 and 0 count. She took a swing on the next pitch and tipped it foul and the count was even. She held her bat on the next pitch, but the ball found its mark. Then, the FIREBALL pitcher turned on the heat and got one past Olivia for the 2nd time in a row to strike her out and close the inning.
Lexie was in to pitch for BLUR in the 1st. Lexie took a moment to warm her arm up, but, with 1 strike in the mix, Lexie walked the 1st batter. Finding her rhythm, Lexie turned it around on the next batter. No swing, strike 1. No swing, strike 2. Ball. Ball. Finally, she brought in the last pitch and found her target. Strike 3. Riding the wave, Lexie did even better on the next batter. She got the FIREBALL batter to swing on the 1st pitch and squeaked the ball past her for strike 1. Then, the next 2 pitches flew by and caught the batter napping, bringing in strikes 2 and 3 for the strikeout on the 3rd FIREBALL batter. Cooling off, Lexie missed on her 1st pitch on the next batter. Another ball got past Hylah and the FIREBALL runner successfully stole 2nd. Another ball came through and the runner took 3rd on another successful steal. Finally, a walk on the batter put FIREBALLS on 1st and 3rd. The next batter took a swing on Lexie’s 1st pitch and tipped it foul for strike 1. Lexie threw the heat on her next pitch and got it past the batter to bring up strike 2. The batter stayed alive on Lexie’s next pitch by fouling it off. On Lexie’s next pitch, the batter took a swing to try to duplicate her previous effort, but, this time, she got a bigger piece of it and sent it down the 3rd base side of the BLUR infield. Janessa moved in to collect the ball. Seeing the runner coming in from 2nd, Janessa decided to go for the easy out, by tagging the runner as the other runner crossed home plate for the 3rd out of the inning. Since the play at 3rd was not a force and the other runner crossed the plate before the tag, the run scored and tied up the game for the FIREBALLS.
BLUR 1 – FIREBALLS 1
2nd Inning
At the top of the 2nd, Natalie came to the plate to see what she could do. The 1st pitch to Natalie went high, but Natalie quickly followed it up with a foul ball to even the count. A low pitch, followed by a swing and a miss, inched the count up to 2 and 2. The FIREBALL pitcher’s next pitch missed the target and filled up the count on Natalie. The next pitch had to be perfect to get Natalie out of there. The FIREBALL pitcher wound up for the pitch and released the ball. Reading the ball perfectly, Natalie held her bat and let the umpire do her work. The umpire called it a ball and Natalie got on base with a walk. Anna was up next. On the 1st pitch, the ball hit the ground and got past the FIREBALL catcher. Natalie took the opportunity to steal 2nd. On the next pitch, Anna took a swing and connected. The ball was moving fast and Natalie took off for 3rd. Reacting quickly, the pitcher reached out her glove and caught the line drive, getting Anna out , and stopped Natalie in her tracks. Natalie turned back to 2nd and ran as fast as she could, but the pitcher was able to connect with the 2nd baseman to get the double play. Kas was up next. She split the difference with the pitcher on the 1st 2 pitches, including a hit that went foul, to get the count to 1 and 1. Kas took a swing on the next pitch and sent the ball bouncing down the 3rd base line. Kas took off for 1st as the FIREBALL 3rd baseman moved in to get the ball. The 3rd baseman scooped up the ball and threw to 1st. She beat Kas to the bag by a hair and was able to get the 3rd out with the throw.
Lexie was back in to pitch in the 2nd. Lexie came in firing to begin the 2nd. Heat on the 1st pitch, got it by the 1st batter for a strike. Then the batter fouled it off on the 2nd pitch to bring up 0 and 2. A passed ball on the next pitch cooled things off a bit, but Lexie was able to get the batter to swing on the next pitch for the strikeout. The 2nd FIREBALL batter came out swinging and connected on Lexie’s 1st pitch. She sent the ball on a slow roll up the middle. Lexie had to come way off of the rubber to collect the ball. She turned and threw to Natalie at 1st. Natalie stretched to catch the ball, but it fell out of her glove. Quickly, Natalie recovered it and stepped on 1st just before the runner and got the 2nd out of the inning. After a low pitch on the next FIREBALL batter, Lexie tried to get a strike through, but the batter was ready for it. The batter connected and sent the ball through the middle on an awkward bounce. The ball hit the ground and bounced over Lexie as she tried to reach the ball. The ball started to come down near Katelyn, playing 2nd, and as she tried to pick it up, Katelyn fumbled the ball, giving the runner enough time to make it safely to 1st. Lexie went back to work as the next batter came to the plate. Lexie’s 1st pitch blew past the immobile FIREBALL batter for strike 1. Her next 2 pitches missed the mark, bringing up 2 and 1. The runner on 1st kept threatening to steal, but was held back by Hylah from her position at catcher. Another ball came through and, yet again, Hylah had to work hard to keep the runner on 1st. Finally, a walk on the batter put FIREBALL runners on 1st and 2nd. Lexie started to struggle on the rubber and took 3 pitches on the next batter before finding her strike. On a passed ball, the FIREBALL runners stole 2nd and 3rd and a walk on the batter eventually loaded the bases for the FIREBALLS. Trying to get us out of the inning unscathed, Lexie threw low on her 1st pitch to the next batter for a ball. On the next pitch, the batter took a swing and connected. The line drive went straight back to Lexie and, getting her glove up in time, Lexie was able to secure the ball on the fly to get the batter out, stranding 3 FIREBALLS on base.
BLUR 1 – FIREBALLS 1
3rd Inning
Continuing to show that these 2 teams were very evenly matched, the score was still tied as the game moved into the 3rd inning. Jahlan was up 1st to start things off in the 3rd. On the 1st pitch, Jahlan took a swing and got a hit. The ball went rolling through the 3rd base side of the FIREBALL infield. The FIREBALL short stop rushed in to scoop up the ball as Jahlah ran toward 1st base. Coming up firing, the short stop threw the ball to 1st, beating Jahlan to the bag and getting the 1st out of the inning. Nikki was up next. A high ball on the 1st 2 pitches got Nikki ahead in the count, but the FIREBALL pitcher quickly turned things around as she threw heaters on the next 2 pitches, getting them by Nikki as she held her bat. On the next pitch, Nikki identified the strike pitch and took a swing. Her bat sailed just over the ball and the pitch reached the FIREBALL catcher’s glove to score the 2nd out. Jessica was up next. The FIREBALL pitcher had problems trying to find Jessica’s strike zone and, after a 1st strike pitch, she threw 4 balls in a row, walking Jessica. Janessa was next at bat. The FIREBALL pitcher’s 1st pitch came in hot and accurate, bringing up 0 and 1. The catcher dropped the ball and lost it for a moment and allowed Jessica enough time to make it to 2nd on a steal. The next pitch went wide and Jessica took off for 3rd. The catcher reached out her arm to make the catch and she got up and tried to throw Jessica out at 3rd. The ball came in as Jessica approached the base. The FIREBALL 3rd baseman caught the ball and turned to tag Jessica, but Jessica touched the base and was safe. Unfortunately, Jessica didn’t stop on the bag. She overran 3rd base and almost reached the fence on the 3rd base side. Seeing a 2nd opportunity, the FIREBALL 3rd baseman held on to the ball and tagged Jessica for the 3rd out, retiring the side and sending BLUR back to the drawing board.
Natalie was brought in to pitch in the 3rd. Natalie’s 1st pitch on the 1st FIREBALL batter went high, but she got the batter to swing and miss the next pitch to even up the count at 1 and 1. Her next pitch missed the mark again, but Natalie quickly found a strike on the next pitch to even up the count again at 2 and 2. Brining her trademark fastball, Natalie caught the stunned FIREBALL batter and got the ball past her as she held the bat for the strikeout. Finding her groove, Natalie got to work on the next batter. Bringing the heat again, the ball hit the target and the FIREBALL batter was left scratching her head. The batter took a swing at the next pitch, but misjudged the speed and missed for strike 2. The ball went high on the next pitch, but Natalie was able to reel it back in and threw the heat on the next pitch for the 2nd strikeout in a row. The next FIREBALL batter wouldn’t go down so easily. A high ball on the 1st pitch brought up 1 and 0. A strike on the next pitch evened up the count. Another ball brought up 2 and 1. On the next pitch, the FIREBALL batter connected and sent the ball on a hard bounce up the middle of the infield. Making a quick adjustment, Natalie collected the ball on the bounce and, with some time, turned and made the easy throw to 1st for the 3rd out to close out the 3rd inning with both teams still tied.
BLUR 1 – FIREBALLS 1
4th Inning
With the score still even going into the 4th, and both team effectively cancelling each other out, the game looked like it was headed for a repeat of BLUR’s last game against the FIREBALLS. Janessa was up 1st to complete her at bat from the previous inning. Janessa was up 1st. The FIREBALL pitcher’s 1st pitch came in fast and Janessa was caught holding her bat, but after the initial pitch, the pitcher couldn’t find her strike again. 3 pitches in a row went by before the pitcher fired in a strike to bring up full count on Janessa. The next pitch went low and Janessa got on base with a walk. Janessa dropped her bat as she jogged to 1st. The FIREBALL 2nd baseman and short stop moved to cover 2nd and the pitcher kept an eye on Janessa, anticipating the steal. Sure enough, without warning and without direction from her base coaches, Janessa turned on the speed as she rounded 1st. As the pitcher turned to make the throw, Janessa ignored the warnings and refused to turn back to 1st, hoping for an error. The pitcher released the ball and beat Janessa to 2nd base, allowing the FIREBALL 2nd baseman to make the catch and get the tag for the out. Rachel was up next. Trying to shake off the earlier play, Rachel was caught off guard by the 1st pitch and held her bat for strike 1. The next pitch went low and evened up the count. Rachel took a swing on the next pitch but missed and the 2nd strike was recorded, bringing up 1 and 2. Finally, the pitcher lost control of the next pitch and hit Rachel with the ball. After a moment to recover, Rachel got on base with a walk as Katelyn came to the plate to take her at bat. The 1st pitch to Katelyn went high, but the next pitch was on target and Katelyn held her bat as the count reached 1 and 1. Katelyn got a piece of the next pitch and sent a hard line drive back to the pitcher as Katelyn and Rachel took off. The pitcher tried to catch the ball, but dropped it. The pitcher scrambled to get control of the ball. As she came up, she saw that Rachel was just getting to 2nd. Seeing that Katelyn still had some ground to cover, the pitcher decided to turn her attention to 1st base. She stepped and made the throw and the FIREBALL 1st baseman caught the ball and got the out on Katelyn. With a BLUR runner on 2nd base, Lexie took her turn at bat. The 1st pitch on Lexie got past the catcher and Rachel stole her way into scoring position. The next pitch came through hard and fast and was called a strike by the umpire, but it got past the catcher and rolled up the backstop. Trying to make something happen and get the BLUR offense moving, Rachel rolled the dice and took off for home. The FIREBALL pitcher quickly moved in to cover the plate and Rachel, wanting to avoid the collision, slowed up just enough for the catcher to throw the ball back home to get the out on Rachel, retiring the side.
Natalie was back in to pitch for BLUR in the 4th. The 1st FIREBALL batter came out swinging. Unfortunately, she missed on the 1st 2 pitches and quickly got behind in the count against Natalie. But Natalie was unable to find her strike zone with her next 3 pitches and brought up full count. A ball on the next pitch put the batter on base with a walk. The next FIREBALL batter came out swinging aggressively as well. She fouled out the 1st pitch. A low ball on the next pitch evened up the count and another low pitch brought the count to 2 and 1. On the next pitch, the batter made contact and sent the ball through the BLUR infield toward 2nd base. Katelyn got in front of the ball and made the stop as the runner from 1st reached 2nd. Katelyn got up and threw to 1st as the runner, now on 2nd, seizing her opportunity, left for 3rd. The ball reached 1st in time to get the 1st out, but the other runner made it to 3rd on the play. The next FIREBALL batter came to the plate. After fouling out Natalie’s 1st pitch and swinging at and missing the next, the batter made contact on the next pitch and sent a fast grounder down the 3rd base side of the BLUR infield. Janessa moved in to make the stop but the ball got past her glove. Lexie, playing short stop, moved toward the ball, but it was too far out of reach and the ball reached the grass. The FIREBALL runner was headed for home. As the BLUR outfield tried to get the ball home, the runner, now on 1st, turned her single into a double and the other runner beat the ball home and scored, effectively breaking the long-running tie late in the game. After the count reached 3 and 1, the next batter connected on a pitch and sent the ball into the BLUR outfield. Rachel rushed in, picked up the ball and threw it back to the infield to hold the runners at 1st and 3rd. After fouling out the 1st pitch, the 5th FIREBALL batter hit one past Katelyn, playing 2nd, for a single and brought a runner across the plate. A walk on the next 2 batters loaded the bases and brought in another FIREBALL run. The next batter came to the plate swinging and hit a slow grounder down the middle. Natalie moved in to collect the ball and threw the ball to 1st for the 2nd out, but 1 more run scored. After Natalie battled with the next batter to a count of 2 and 2, the batter got a hit and sent the ball into the BLUR right field for a single, brining home another FIREBALL runner. Katelyn was injured on the play trying to get the stop on the infield. The next FIREBALL batter came to the plate and connected on Natalie’s 1st pitch and sent the ball racing down the 3rd base line. Janessa reeled it in and threw the ball to Kas at 1st for the 3rd out, moving the game into the 5th inning.
BLUR 1 – FIREBALLS 6
5th Inning
With the FIREBALLS exploding with 5 points in the last inning, BLUR had to play catch up. Lexie was up 1st to see if she could get the BLUR offense started. On the 1st pitch, Lexie got a hit and sent the ball rolling up the 1st base side of the infield. The FIREBALL 2nd baseman got the stop and flipped the ball to get the out on Lexie at 1st. A walk on Hylah put a BLUR runner on base. Olivia was up next. After fouling out the 1st pitch on a bunt attempt, Olivia was hit by a stray pitch and got on base with a walk. With BLUR runners on 1st and 2nd, Natalie was next up to the plate. After a ball on the 1st pitch, Natalie connected, but the ball popped up over the FIREBALL infield. The 3rd baseman moved under the ball and made the catch for the 2nd out and Hylah was caught off base, hoping for the FIREBALL defender to drop the ball. Once the ball was secured, Hylah had to scramble back to 2nd base to narrowly avoid getting picked off. Anna was up next. Swinging on the pitcher’s 1st pitch, Anna brought up strike 1. The next pitch went low, but the umpire called it a strike and the count was at 0 and 2. Anna tried to connect on the next pitch, but fouled it off to stay alive. On the next pitch, the ball got past the FIREBALL catcher and the BLUR runners stole 2nd and 3rd and put themselves into scoring position. Another ball evened up the count at 2 and 2. On the next pitch, Anna took a swing and missed the ball, striking out and closing out the 5th for the BLUR offense.
With the clock ticking on the game, BLUR had to get out of the 5th inning quickly to get another shot at a comeback. Lexie was brought in to pitch. As if on cue, Lexie got off to a great start. Throwing heat on her 1st pitch in the inning, the batter was caught off guard and held her bat for strike 1. The FIREBALL batter took a swing on the next pitch and missed for strike 2. Lexie missed the mark on the next 3 pitches to bring up full count. Then, she brought another heater across the plate and got it past the batter for the strikeout. The 2nd FIREBALL batter came out swinging and connected on Lexie’s 1st pitch. She sent the ball bouncing down the 3rd base side of the field. Lexie, reacting quickly, was able to get in front of it. On the bounce, Lexie grabbed the ball and threw to Hylah, playing 1st, for the 2nd out of the inning. Undeterred, Lexie got back to work as the next FIREBALL pitcher came to the plate. In quick succession, Lexie threw heat on the 1st 2 pitches and the FIREBALL batter was stunned with 2 strike pitches in a row. On the next pitch, the batter took a swing and fouled it off to stay alive. Lexie lost control of her next 2 pitches and evened up the count at 2 and 2. Then, for her last pitch of the inning, Lexie dialed it in and burned one in to Kas’s glove for strike 3, getting the final out of the inning with enough time in the game to start the 6th inning and giving BLUR a final shot at getting back in the game.
BLUR 1 – FIREBALLS 6
6th Inning
Kas was up 1st in the 6th inning to try to get the BLUR offense in motion. Taking a swing on a low pitch and swinging and missing on the 2nd pitch put 2 strikes on the count and Kas was behind quickly. Kas took a swing on the next pitch and fouled it off to stay alive. Then, on the next pitch Kas connected. Unfortunately, the ball popped up and started to drift into foul territory. The FIREBALL catcher got under the ball and caught it for the 1st out of the inning. Jahlan was up next. 2 missed pitches in a row and Jahlan got ahead in the count early, but battling back and forth with the pitcher, she inched her way to full count. Then Jahlan fouled off 2 in a row to stay alive. On the next pitch, the FIREBALL pitcher squeezed one through and caught Jahlan holding her bat for the strikeout and the 2nd out of the inning. With the window of opportunity closing, and time ticking away, on BLUR in the 6th, Nikki came up to the plate. The pitcher had trouble adjusting to Nikki’s strike zone and, with 1 swinging strike in the mix, wasn’t able to get Nikki out of there and gave her 1st base on a walk. Still struggling against Jessica, the FIREBALL was able to reach full count before sending Jessica to 1st on another walk. Janessa was up next. On a passed ball on the 1st pitch, the BLUR runners stole their way into scoring position. The FIREBALL catcher tried to get the throw off, but it was too late and the runners advanced safely. After fouling one off and holding her bat for a ball on the FIREBALL pitcher’s next 2 pitches, Janessa got a hit and sent a fast grounder through the FIREBALL infield out into the grass for a single and brought both Nikki and Jessica home, adding 2 more to BLUR’s tally. Back at the top of the lineup, Rachel was up next. After working her way to 2 and 2 against the FIREBALL pitcher, Rachel got a hit and sent the ball rolling down the 3rd base line. The 3rd baseman made the stop, but, trying to get the out on Janessa, BLUR’s lead runner, motioned like she was going to throw the ball to 2nd. No one was ready for the catch at 2nd and the 3rd baseman had to hold her throw, giving Janessa and Rachel enough time to advance safely. Lexie was up next. A passed ball on the 1st pitch caused the BLUR runners to threaten the steal, but the FIREBALL catcher recovered quickly and forced them back. After a foul tip on the next pitch, Lexie stood her ground for the next few pitches as the pitcher struggled to regain her rhythm. In the end, the pitcher walked Lexie and loaded the bases. Hylah was up next. The 1st pitch on Hylah got past the catcher and rolled up the backstop. Janessa decided to roll the dice and she tried for home. The FIREBALL pitcher moved in to cover home plate. Janessa stutter-stepped, then slowed her run as she was wary of the collision. This gave the FIREBALL defense enough time to recover the ball and get it back to the pitcher, who stepped on home plate to get the force out and stifling the BLUR offense.
With the clock ticking on the game, the BLUR defense had to work fast to bring up another inning if they were going have another chance. Hylah was brought in to pitch. As this was one of Hylah's few appearances at the rubber this season, she got off to a slow start. After her 1st pitch went high, Hylah was able to get the 1st batter to swing. The batter fouled the ball off to even up the count at 1 and 1. Hylah was not able to find the strike again on the batter and the batter got on base with a walk. The next batter came to the plate and took a swing at Hylah's 1st pitch. She connected, but popped the ball up high above Kas, playing catcher. Kas got up and under the ball, then reached her glove out. It looked like she lost the ball in the air. So, she gritted her teeth and kept her glove open. She caught the ball for the 1st out of the inning. The 3rd FIREBALL batter came to the plate next. On Hylah's 1st pitch, the batter connected and sent the ball through the BLUR infield. Lexie came off of 1st to collect the ball. As she got up to make her throw, she took a hard step toward 2nd to go for the FIREBALL's lead runner, but no one was at 2nd to cover. By the time Lexie turned to 1st, the batter crossed the bag and was safe. With runners on 1st and 2nd, Hylah turned her attention back to the plate. Her 1st pitch went high. The batter fouled off the next pitch and the count was at 1 and 1. Hylah got one past the swinging batter on the next pitch and the FIREBALL runners stole their way into scoring position. A ball on the next pitch brought the count to 2 and 2. Hylah dug deep on her next pitch and threw a heater right into Kas's glove and the surprised batter struck out and was sent back to the FIREBALL dugout. The next batter came out swinging. She missed Hylah's 1st pitch and fouled off the 2nd. A passed ball on the next pitch got the runners moving, but Kas quickly recovered and the runners were forced back to their bases. Inching their way to full count, Hylah and the batter knew that the next pitch would decide who won the battle. Hylah wound up and released the ball. The batter took a swing and connected, sending the ball rolling fast through the infield. Rachel moved in to stop the ball, but the ball got past her and rolled into the grass and the runner was able to reach 2nd base on the play as she brought the 2 other FIREBALLS home. Hylah's 1st pitch on the next batter was on the mark, but she lost control of the next one and hit the batter. The batter took 1st base on a walk as the next batter came to the plate. Shaken by the last play, Hylah had trouble finding her strike and after reaching a count of 3 and 0, Hylah's next pitch went wild again and hit the 2nd batter in a row, loading the bases. It was time to switch pitchers, but before that could happen, regulation time expired and since the FIREBALLS were ahead in the game and they were the home team, the umpire called it and the game was over.
Final Score
BLUR 3 – FIREBALLS 8
Game Ball
Another tough loss for the BLUR girls, especially since this was a team that we were very evenly matched with, especially given the fact that our last game against the FIREBALLS ended in a tie. Unfortunately, our typical weeknight slow start, coupled with some crucial mental errors during the game, hurt us in the end. That said, it's always difficult to give out a game ball under those circumstances. Hylah was awarded the game ball, not only for her performance during this game, as she played all over the field including finishing the game at the rubber, but also her overall performance and contribution to the team this season. Great job Hylah!
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