West County places second in state softball

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. – West County head softball coach C.J. Wright had the unique opportunity to share two state final four appearances with sister and standout player Rikki Lyn in 2015 and 2016.

Once that pinnacle for the program had been established, Wright envisioned that daughter Gracie and her talented class could someday enjoy a similar experience.

Several years of dedication and competition culminated in the Lady Bulldogs coming back to Springfield this week with designs on bringing home their first MSHSAA Class 2 championship.

The most decorated season collectively for girls athletics at West County instead concluded with long hugs and forced smiles through tears after capturing the second runner-up trophy in team history.

Mt. Vernon capped a magnificent season with its 29th consecutive victory, and prevailed 6-0 for a championship celebration at Killian Sports Complex.

“I thought that when Gracie and that group got up here, that we would have the best team in the state,’ Wright said. “We were one game short. That team had a fantastic year, nationally ranked.”

Harley Daniels pitched a complete game five-hitter with nine strikeouts, and leadoff batter Payge Evans used her blazing speed during two singles for Mt. Vernon (37-1).

Third baseman Reese Smith, one of six recent graduates playing her final varsity game, was officially 2-for-3 to pace West County (24-5).

The Lady Bulldogs were only outhit 7-5 overall. That margin could have perhaps been inverted if not for several excellent catches on the run by Mt. Vernon outfielders.

“We just couldn’t get hits together when we needed them,” said Smith after West County went 0-for-5 with runners in scoring position. “Defensively, we were fine. I think we were all a little tired.”

Gracie Wright delivered one of her greatest performances from the pitching circle on Monday with 17 strikeouts in a tense 2-0 semifinal triumph over Ava.

She held the dangerous Mountaineers – with extra-base potential stacked throughout their lineup – to seven hits while striking out two and walking one over six innings.

The opening frame marked a turning point after both offenses appeared to be locked in. West County often achieved more distance on outs than Mt. Vernon did when finding open grass.

Left fielder Addie Hall and center Cheyenne Bieber raced back to take potential hits away from both Wright and Tongay before Morgan Simily connected for a sprinting two-out triple to deep right field.

Smith crushed the ensuing pitch down the left-field line and beyond the fence with about 50 or 60 feet to spare. But the field umpire ruled the towering drive foul after hesitating for a few seconds.

It would have been the 11th home run of a stellar spring for Smith, who was then called out as Daniels zipped a fastball toward the outer edge of the plate.

“That ball was 100 percent fair. I wouldn’t say that if there was any question,” Wright said. “As a coach, I went straight to the line. I knew that it would be close. The umpire did, too. I don’t understand what took him so long to make a call.

“If you’re that indecisive, and it’s that close, it’s probably a fair ball. It changed the complexion of that inning for sure. We could have been winning 2-0 rather than going into the next inning with a home run taken away from us. You could see that it took two innings for us to get over that.”

Wright began her outing by striking Evans out following an eight-pitch battle, then induced a fly out to Tongay in left field. But the heart of the Mt. Vernon order delivered.

Daniels ripped an RBI double, Bieber tripled in two more, and Hali Stokes singled for a 4-0 cushion after a walk sparked a parade of five consecutive base runners.

“I think we all may have gotten down on ourselves after that first inning,” Tongay said.

Molly Daniels added an RBI single in the second after Evans bunted for a hit and stole second base, but Wright regrouped to pitch effectively over the remaining duration.

Simily helped the cause with a long running catch in right-center, and second baseman Natalee Womack leaped for a dazzling snag of a line drive. Catcher Grace Barton caught a runner stealing in the third.

The Lady Bulldogs generated optimism when Tongay singled to left and Smith added a one-out hit after fouling off several offerings in the top of the fourth.

Daniels was able to overcome that threat, however, and likewise worked through the sixth after Tongay earned a nine-pitch walk and Smith delivered her second single.

The Mountaineers added a run in their half of the sixth on a bunt single from Evans after a hit batsman ended a string of nine in a row retired by Wright.

Freshman outfielder Lacey LaMarr lined an opposite-field double to extend the game for West County, but the final out came before the lineup could flip over to Wright in the leadoff spot.

“It’s been great, but not without trials and errors,” Coach Wright said when describing his team’s rise. “With my daughter on the team, it’s different than when my sister was on the team. These kids have been around me a lot more, and I was able to see them grow up into great young women and fantastic softball players. I feel fortunate to be part of it.”

The awards ceremony was bittersweet, although rewarding, for the second-place squad. Along the first-base line stood a snapshot of past and present West County tradition with the inclusion of assistant coaches Hannah Echel and Rikki Lyn Laughlin – the sister of the head coach – who led West County to its previous runner-up finish seven years ago.

“This weekend was honestly amazing from just the bus rides, hanging out at the hotel together and knowing that we had two games no matter what happened,” Smith said. “We’re all really close, even the non-athletes in our senior class. We all support each other. This is what we’ve wanted to do since our freshman year.”

The Lady Bulldogs played their softball season opener just two days after Alexis Hedgcorth, Wright and Simily wrapped their varsity basketball careers with a second consecutive fourth-place state result.

Wright and Smith will be junior college opponents next year at Three Rivers and St. Charles, respectively. Simily has received interest from Mineral Area.

“Coach told us over all four years of high school, ‘You all will make it to the final four.’ And we all knew that this was our year to do it,” Tongay said. “I have played softball my whole life just to get here. It’s very satisfying. We’ve all put in a lot of work.”