Softball playoffs: Flower Mound beats Hebron in one-game regional final; Melissa wins in rout
· Yahoo Sports
HURST — Bella Flores had every reason to celebrate big on Thursday. She had a monster game, but considering what the sophomore pitcher and her Flower Mound teammates are aiming for, she made a conscious effort to be modest for her moment of glory.
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Flores threw a two-hit shutout and drove in the game’s only run as Flower Mound edged Hebron 1-0 to win the one-game Class 6A Division I Region I final at the L.D. Bell High School softball field. Mixing accurate riseballs and off-speed pitches, Flores had eight strikeouts while allowing one walk.
Flores got her RBI with a two-out single to right in the bottom of the first to bring home Nahla Hurst, who led off the inning with a triple to center, the only extra-base hit of the game.
It was the third time Flower Mound beat Hebron, a District 5-6A and Lewisville ISD rival, by one run this season. Flores said she made adjustments in her pitching to keep Hebron off-balance. Flores also had an error-free defense backing her, with standout plays including second baseman Julisa Balderas making a backhand stop of a drive by Alyssa Summers to set up the final out of the game.
“Coach [Mark] Larriba definitely did a good job in calling more off-speed pitches, but all-around I think we did really good as a team,” Flores said. “The defense was especially good.”
Flower Mound (28-8-1) improved to 7-0 in the playoffs and will make a return trip to the state semifinals, the third appearance in this round in program history. Hebron (28-13) was denied advancing to the state semifinals for the first time since 2010 and lost an elimination game for the first time this year after going 4-0 in the first three rounds of the playoffs.
Flower Mound could have a state semifinal rematch against Waco Midway, which Midway won two games to one in a best-of-3 series last year. Midway is playing Spring Grand Oaks in the 6A-I Region II final series, with Game 2 to be played Friday.
Hebron’s best chance to score a run was in the fifth inning when Rylee Holland walked, then stole second and third. Flores regrouped to get two strikeouts to get out of the jam.
Hebron ace Kate Buesing (22-8) also pitched a gem in a hard-luck loss for her high school finale. The Southern Nazarene signee struck out five while scattering six hits and one walk. Buesing got out of a jam in the fifth inning with a strikeout with Flower Mound having runners on second and third.
— Rick Kretzschmar
Melissa 14, Prosper Walnut Grove 2:Oklahoma pledge Finlee Williams went 3 for 4 with a home run, two doubles, two runs and two RBIs as nationally ranked Melissa won Game 1 of the best-of-3 Class 5A Division I Region II final in six innings.
Arizona pledge Eloisa Maes allowed three hits and one run in five innings as Melissa (32-2) extended its winning streak to 27 games, and Rihanna Wheeler had two hits and scored three runs. Melissa, which had 11 hits and drew eight walks, has outscored the opposition 380-63 on the season.
Melissa, ranked No. 4 in the nation, raced to a 3-0 lead in the top of the first as Amariee “Shug” Bradford had an RBI triple — one of 10 extra-base hits for the team. Melissa turned the game into a rout with a six-run fourth, an inning that featured home runs from Williams and Hattie Winter and made it 10-0.
Melissa is trying to become the first team to win three consecutive state championships in one of the UIL’s top two classifications.
Trophy Club Byron Nelson 2, Denton Guyer 1:A solo home run by Courtney Julian in the bottom of the fifth broke a 1-1 tie and gave Byron Nelson the victory in Game 2 of the best-of-3 6A Division II Region I final. Game 3 is scheduled for 7 p.m. Friday at Coppell’s ninth-grade campus.
Guyer took a 1-0 lead in the top of the third when a run scored on an error, but Byron Nelson tied it in the fourth when McKenna Cleary scored on a wild pitch. Guyer had a chance to tie it in the top of the seventh, but a runner was thrown out at home for the second out while trying to score on a single by Madison Mettille.
Meredith Hambric worked around seven hits to pitch a complete game for Byron Nelson (37-6-1) while striking out six. Notre Dame signee Finley Montgomery allowed only four hits and struck out seven for Guyer (35-3), which saw its 11-game winning streak end.
Forney 9, Tomball 8:Sophia Heredia’s walk-off hit with one out in the bottom of the seventh capped a two-run inning and gave Forney a two-game sweep of the 6A Division II Region II final. An RBI single by Juliana Tamburine tied it 8-8 as Forney (35-3) rallied to extend its winning streak to 22 games.
Kylah Price and Bailee McGhee started the winning rally by drawing back-to-back walks to start the seventh, and Heredia finished 4 for 5 with three RBIs. Avery Pitts earned the win for Forney, allowing two runs and striking out seven in five innings of relief.
Tomball scored four runs in the top of the second to go up 6-1, but Forney responded with a six-run bottom of the second for a 7-6 lead. A two-out RBI double by Brileigh Taylor gave Tomball an 8-7 lead in the top of the sixth.
Hallsville 3, Midlothian Heritage 2:Miller Goswick hit a three-run home run in the bottom of the sixth as Hallsville rallied to win a one-game playoff in the 5A Division II Region II final.
Heritage ace Trinity Chittamai took a no-hitter into the bottom of the sixth but allowed a single and walk before Goswick’s homer. Midlothian Heritage took a 1-0 lead in the second when a run scored on an error, then added a run in the top of the sixth on a two-out RBI triple by Skeylah Shirley.
Prosper Richland 16, Sanger 12:First-year program Prosper Richland kept its season alive, tying the best-of-3 4A Division I Region II final at one win apiece after rallying from deficits of 8-3 and 9-5. Game 3 is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. Friday at Denton Ryan.
Sam Riley was 3 for 5 with four RBIs for Richland, and Justyce Malone finished 2 for 4 with three runs and two RBIs. Isabelle Lewis went 2 for 2 with three RBIs as part of Richland’s 15-hit attack, and Layla Pourciau was 3 for 4 with four RBIs.
Richland, which saw its 21-game winning streak end Wednesday in the series opener, saw Sanger go up 8-3 with an eight-run top of the second. But Richland scored seven times in the fourth for a 12-9 lead as the first eight batters reached safely.