North Harrison did all they could to stop Princeton, but they couldn’t break through against the Blue Tigers and fell to them 2-0, an identical score to the Worth County game the night before. Playing in their last game as Shamrocks were Emma Craig, Kami Gibson, Rainey Fordyce, Lola Breshears, and Carly Rinehart. It was a scoreless pitching duel until the seventh, when Princeton finally tagged the Shamrocks with two runs for the win.
Coach Brandon Craig said that if his squad was going to go down, that was the way to go. “It was just a good game of softball,” he said. Everything was all about process, attitude, and effort, and the scoreboard would take care of itself. The Shamrocks won 20 games this year, beating quality teams like Hamilton, Mercer three times, Worth County twice, Princeton, Lawson, Maryville, Lathrop, and others. They turned back challenges from conference teams on the rise; all the teams raised their level of play this year.
Princeton pitcher Lauren Krohn beat the Shamrocks 3-1 last year in the District Title Game and has only gotten better since then. This year, she added a devastating change, one of the best changes anybody on the squad has seen since the Canton pitcher in the 2017 State Semifinal game. As a result, even the good hitters were striking out.
Emma Craig waited on a change and hit it into the gap for a double with two outs, but then Rainey Fordyce flied out for the final out in the first.
Carly Rinehart did all she could for the Shamrocks to keep her squad in the game. Her first challenge came in the fourth inning when Princeton reached on an error when a pop fly dropped uncalled and untouched; such was the quality of play that it turned out to be the only error of the game for either side. Faith Siemer made it all the way to second on the play and went to third when Makenzie Dunkin bunted her over. Jasmine Allen walked and stole second, and Princeton was all primed for the big inning. But then Grace Kelly was called out on strikes for the second out. There was a heartstopping moment when Carsey Brown hit a long drive to left that would have made it 3-0, but it tailed off foul at the last minute, and she struck out.
North Harrison got its leadoff batter on in the fourth when Carly Rinehart singled to left. But Emma Craig popped out and Rainey Fordyce hit it hard down the line, but the left fielder was positioned perfectly to make the catch. Rinehart stole second on a close play, but Camden Castleberry grounded out to end the threat.
With one out in the fifth, Emma Walkup doubled into the gap in right center, and then North Harrison intentionally walked Lauren Krohn. They went to second and third on a wild pitch with one out, but the move paid off when Megan Spencer and Faith Siemer both struck out to strand them there.
With one out, Jayliegh Robins hit a towering pop that dropped in for a base hit in right center in the North Harrison sixth. Carly Rinehart forced her at second, but then stole second. Emma Craig hit a screamer down the right field line that was just foul and then a screamer that was just foul down the left field line before grounding out to end the inning.
North Harrison had a chance to get out of the seventh, as the 7-8-9 hitters were coming up for Princeton, but then Alison Allen hit a one out home run to dead center to break the tie and put Princeton up 1-0. Walkup struck out, but Lauren Krohn reached on a close 3-2 pitch, Megan Spencer beat out an infield hit, and Faith Siemer singled home Princeton’s second run.
The Shamrocks got their first two baserunners on in the bottom of the seventh as Rainey Fordyce singled to left and Camden Castleberry hit a pop fly to left that dropped in and Rainey scrambled to second just in time to avoid a force. Kami Gibson struck out, but then Fordyce and Castleberry made it to second and third on a wild pitch. But then Jaci Davis and Ruby Heintz both struck out to end the game.
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