Jacob Farmer / jfarmer@yelmonline.com
The Rainier High School softball team has found its groove.
Winners of their previous five, the Mountaineers added another with a 7-6 walk-off victory against Toledo at Rainier Elementary School on Monday, April 14.
The last time these two played, on March 17, the home-team Riverhawks handed the Mountaineers a 14-4 loss.
Rainier hasn’t lost since.
Down a run in the bottom of the seventh, Mia Naval opened the frame by ripping a leadoff double deep into the outfield. After a popout by Elaina Henry, all-star slugger Ryleigh Cruse stepped to the plate. Cruse laid a hard grounder that bounced off Toledo second baseman Bella Lawton.
It was enough to bring Naval home from second. But it wasn’t over.
After picking up the ball, Toledo catcher Xtyn Norberg attempted to throw the running Cruse out at second. The ball ricocheted into the outfield, allowing Cruse to round all the way home, ending the game.
Cruse finished the game with three hits and two runs. Naval added two hits and three runs.
“We had to have it,” Rainier head coach Katie Qualls said of the winning run.
A two-run seventh-inning rally by the Riverhawks — aided by an error and a fielding gaffe — nearly doomed the Mountaineers going into the final frame.
“We struggle a little bit in the outfield, and we know that, and we work on it,” Qualls said, adding that nerves may have played a factor.
Tied at five with a Riverhawks runner on third, Qualls called a timeout to focus her team. Rainier would give up one more run before heading to bat.
“So, obviously, bottom of the seventh, we were exactly where we wanted to be in the lineup,” Qualls said.
A lack of timely hits was a problem early in the season, especially with runners on base, but Qualls said her team’s hard work is paying off, and it doesn’t always mean getting doubles or triples. Even a base hit or a walk is important at this point in the season.
“The bulk of our lineup, one through six, they know how important they are, and they know how important they are as a team and not just individually,” she said. “So, yeah, as some of them are probably disappointed that they aren’t hitting bombs like they want to. Hey, they’ll take that win over a home run any day. There’s a lot of teamwork coming through right now, and I think that’s pretty cool for them.”
After the game, Mia Naval spoke about her seventh-inning tying run.
“It definitely put a lot on our shoulders being down by one run, bottom of the seventh inning,” Naval said. “When I got up to that plate, it was just: make contact, get on base. That first pitch came … just right down the middle and I just took a hit, and I got it.”
The shortstop excelled in the field, too, catching a crucial line drive to end the sixth. Earlier in the game, she dove to get an out at second.
“I don’t usually play short for my club team. I’m usually third base, but I love it,” Naval said. “Definitely different, a lot of stress, but I’m glad to be here. And those plays, it just gets a lot of weight off, especially when that ball comes flying hot at you.”
Elaina Henry got the win for the Mountaineers, going a full seven innings with four strikeouts and four earned runs allowed. Keira Anderson scored three runs off three hits, including a pivotal two-run double that gave the Mountaineers a 5-3 lead going into the sixth.
The Mountaineers (6-2, 1-0 Central 2B League) look to continue their winning streak with a home matchup against Toutle Lake on Thursday, April 17, followed by another home game against Morton-White Pass on Monday, April 21.
