Best Ever Finish, but No Title

All good things must come to an end and such was the case for the No. 3 Falls Church High School Softball team Wednesday, with a 4-0 loss to repeat champion No. 4 Edison High School in the National District title game.

Resuming play after a massive lightning storm disrupted the game on Tuesday night, the Lady Jags immediately found themselves in the fire with Edison runners on second and third with one out and a full count on Autumn Strawderman, one of the Eagles’ better hitters. But freshman pitcher K.J. Robbins struck out Strawderman and got the next batter to pop-up back to her to end the threat and keep the score tied at zero.

As the game drew on the Lady Jags could never seem to mount a serious offensive threat, while Edison resorted to a strategy of just putting the ball in play to push runs across, repeatedly bunting to advance baserunners and produce offense.

“Edison will test you,” Falls Church Head Coach Colleen Lally said. “They’ll make you come up with good plays.”

After a lead-off double in the top of the fourth inning, a fielder’s choice moved the runner to third and a squeeze bunt pushed the first run across. An inning later, another Edison run crossed the plate following an overthrow at third base. The Eagles added two more runs on three hits in the top of the sixth to put the game out of reach.

While disappointed for her team after the loss, Lally was very excited about the performance her team put forward.

“Edison is always an excellent team, always a respectable team,” she said. “So to lose to Edison is nothing that burns, but … it would have been nice to put it in the win column.”

The second-place finish is the best finish ever for Falls Church in the National District Tournament.

The Jags reached the finals after squeaking past Yorktown 3-1 last Friday on the strength of a seventh-inning, two-run rally. Senior Sarah Blincoe started that rally with a single up the right-field line.

The victory was a true team effort, with senior Ashley Springstein (who holds the school record for most doubles in a season) moving from her usual position at second base over to third. Springstein made all three outs in the first inning, including snagging a popped-up bunt off a dead sprint.

Robbins, who entered the finals with a 1.34 ERA, squelched any offense by Yorktown, while helping her cause on the base paths by breaking the school record for stolen bases in a single game. Lally also noted the strong offensive and defensive performances of senior DH Amber Nichols, junior RF Michelle Andersen, catcher Brooke Robbins and shortstop Lisa Biddle, the National District Player of the Year.

The season is not yet over as the Lady Jags' will bring their 11-7 season record to the Regional Tournament where they will face Madison County on Friday.