Lakers storm back to district final

CLYDE — Danbury knew not to take for granted the steps on its way to a repeat district final appearance. And on Monday night, the Lakers made sure their spot was never in any doubt. "We're really happy about it, we didn't assume that we were gonna get here," Danbury coach Jim Fish said. "... It means a lot. We're very happy to be back." The No. 1 seed routed fourth-seeded Woodmore, 16-0, in a five-inning D-IV district semifinal at Clyde. Danbury advances to Thursday's championship game seeking its first-ever district title. Awaiting the Lakers (18-10) on Thursday night will be the winner of Monday's second semifinal, Fremont St. Joseph. Danbury beat SJCC twice during the season and in last year's district semifinal. "It means a lot," senior pitcher Ellie Fish said. "As soon as the final game was over last year, all I was thinking about was that there was gonna be a next year." Danbury's chances rose considerably before Monday's game even started. Woodmore senior pitcher Cameran Quisno, who was 2-0 against the Lakers this season, wasn't in attendance (personal). "We just know that there are good pitchers behind her," coach Jim Fish said. "We know the book on Quisno, so we just tell ourselves we're expecting the other pitchers to be just as good, and we just had to read them and figure them out." Danbury made sure not to squander its opportunity to score early and often. Maci Brown led off the game by beating out a routine grounder to third for a single. She stole second, then eventually scored on an Ellie Fish RBI groundout. Alera Masters (walk) and Moriah Hatfield (single) each came home on run-scoring walks from Ella McDonald and Miranda Evans, and Danbury led 3-0 after one. The Lakers added one in the second when Hatfield drove a triple to right field to bring home Brown (walk). "You definitely have to wait on it more," Hatfield said of facing a different pitcher. "You have to keep your hands back and wait on it. It's more of a mental thing." Three more runs crossed in the third. McDonald led off with a single, Evans reached on an error and then Charley Lenthe lasered a liner to the right-center fence for a two-run triple. Lenthe came home on a wild pitch. "Just wanted to wait on it and make contact," Lenthe said. "I've been not hitting well recently, so I was like, I've just got to make contact with it, and that's what I did. I just focused on my mechanics and just cutting the ball in half." Danbury delivered the knockout blow in the fourth with nine runs on eight hits. Fish drove a deep fly ball leading off and ended up on third on a play ruled an error. She scored on a groundout by McDonald. Evans walked, then Lenthe followed with a single. Senior Hannah Bickley came up for her first at-bat after playing first base as the flex and smacked a two-run hit up the middle to go up 10-0. Michaela Harris walked, then a Brown infield single turned into two runs and Brown standing on third after a throwing error. Masters walked, then Hatfield drove in a run with a single. Fish singled, then McDonald reached down for her second hit of the day on a pitch below her knees, making it 14-0. "I think I was really early on it, so I just had to make sure I got my hands to the ball and extended to the pitch to make contact," McDonald said. Ainsley Clark, who had pinch-run early in the inning, brought in the 15th run while beating out a grounder to short. It was the freshman's first varsity at-bat. "Two girls that don't get a lot of at-bats, Hannah Bickley and Ainsley Clark, really happy about that," coach Fish said. Lenthe capped the monster inning with her own RBI infield hit, beating out a dribbler to third as the Lakers showed off their swings and their speed. "When we all keep scoring, the energy is there," McDonald said. "Everyone is just hype and so excited and it helps us stay engaged." Woodmore, which had totaled 18 hits across its two regular season wins over Danbury, managed just two against the senior Fish and her defense. "It was all about just relaxing," Fish said. "The first two times I was tight and didn't really trust myself. I knew I had to do it this time, do or die. I just tried to focus on what I do." The Lakers didn't make an error. McDonald converted two hard-charging plays at shortstop, Brown slid for a graceful catch in left field and Evans made two difficult popups look routine at second base. "Ellie was hitting her spots," coach Fish said. "We've seen Woodmore a couple times, and I think we had a good plan. Defense has been coming around the last couple of games." It all added up to a dominant, full-team victory and a spot in the district final. It's only the Lakers' second-ever victory in a district game. And on Thursday, they'll try to do something no Danbury softball team has done before and finish atop the district. "We did the work," the pitcher Fish said. "We got here… I'm really ready, and I can't wait to prove ourselves." Woodmore 000 00 — 0 2 4Danbury 313 9x — 16 12 0 WP: Fish. LP: Scavio 3B: (D) Lenthe, Hatfield