By Dana Harding (For OzarksSportsZone.com)
Marshfield upset top seeded Willard 5-3 in a ten-inning Monday evening thriller to capture the Class 4 District 6 title.
Junior Kendyl Dolan turned in a standout performance in the circle for the Blue Jays, scattering eight hits, walking four batters and striking out six on the evening.
Most importantly, Dolan kept Willard’s heavy-hitting lineup at bay, allowing only one extra-base hit and zero home runs. A significant difference from the two teams’ last meeting – a 14-12 loss featuring a 2 home run, 10 RBI performance from Willard standout Paxtyn Piper.
For Dolan, limiting baserunners and keeping Willard’s top-heavy lineup off-balance was a key strategy heading into the rematch – particularly with respect to Piper, who entered the contest with 15 home runs in the regular season.
“This whole week, we’ve been really focusing on keeping it in the park, and that was our strategy tonight,” Dolan said. “Their game is home runs; they’re going to put it in play, but our defense was great tonight. I knew that my teammates were going to make plays for me, so I just threw it and let them make the plays. That’s what kept us in the game – our defense.”
Head coach James McAnarney praised Dolan for the gritty performance.
“Kendyl is not afraid of anybody,” McAnarney said. “I thought she kept Piper off her power stroke, and she didn’t waver from the plan.
CLICK HERE FOR PHOTOS OF THE GAME
Dolan and the Marshfield defense held Piper to just one hit – a single into left center – in five plate appearances.
“This is probably the best game (Dolan) has thrown all year,” McAnarney said. “She’s put in all the homework to get to this point all week long – trying to figure out what she wanted to do with (Willard’s hitters). She works harder than anybody on this team, and you just saw it tonight. Just a fantastic job today.”
Willard struck first in the bottom of the first inning when pinch-runner Callie Wilken scored on a Kynlee Inman double up the middle.
Marshfield would answer in the second when a pair of Tiger errors allowed Dolan to score from third.
The Blue Jays added a second run in the fourth when Miley Austin drove in Chloe Bateman and followed up with a third run in the sixth on a Madelyn Beckner RBI single to score Dolan again.
Down to its final two outs in the seventh, Willard rallied with a pair of runs.
After Callie Ebert scored on an error, an RBI single from Emily Barr scored Piper to tie the score at 3-3.
Despite the two-run letdown, Dolan seemed to find another gear in the extra innings.
The lanky Marshfield right-hander shut down nine of the final ten Willard hitters to close out the game, with Raegyn Leeper’s 10th-inning single representing the lone Tigers baserunner.
After both lineups went quiet in the eighth and ninth, Marshfield finally broke through in the top of the tenth on a go-ahead RBI from Dolan that scored Sophie Hall. Two batters later, an error brought home Bateman for an insurance run to send the Blue Jays into the Class 4 quarterfinals.
CLICK HERE FOR VIDEO OF THE GAME
After the game, McAnarney was quick to praise his team’s battle-tested chemistry and camaraderie for holding on for the win through adversity.
“Family is the biggest thing for us,” McAnarney said. “Making sure we treat each other like sisters, and we just persevered. We’ve been in positions like this before during the season – which helps us out – and when you get down to this position, we just kept our nose to the ground and didn’t give up.”
Willard ends its season at a school record 31 wins with 7 losses.
Marshfield (22-8) will play either Father Tolton or Jefferson City Saturday, Oct. 30 with a final four berth at stake.
Class 4 District 6 Final: Marshfield – 5, Willard – 3
Marshfield 0 1 0 1 0 1 0 0 0 2 | 5 8 2
Willard 1 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 | 3 8 6
