Richmond won the 2016 Class D softball state championship on Saturday by beating Stearns, 15-6.
BREWER, Maine – The Richmond High School Bobcats are no strangers to softball state championship games.
On Saturday, they won their fourth Class D title in a row by beating the No. 1 team from the North, the Stearns High School Minutemen, 15-6, in a rematch of last year’s championship game.
“We always have this energy, and we have this confidence when we come to bigger games, bigger teams and bigger circumstances,” said sophomore catcher Sydney Tilton.
The victory is the 70th consecutive for the Bobcats.
“Now we’re at that nice number 70 and we’re going to keep going,” said Richmond coach Tony Martin.
“We just love winning. We love the game. We have fun,” said junior pitcher Meranda Martin.
A high-scoring offense has been Richmond’s best weapon this spring. They averaged 16.93 runs during their 15-0 regular season, and they didn’t stop in the playoffs. They reached the state final by beating No. 4 Greenville, 18-1, in the semifinals and No. 3 Buckfield, 13-2, in the regional final.
The offense came early and often for Richmond, who jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the top of the first inning.
“We knew we had to come out with a bang, and we did,” said Tilton.
Martin led off the game by being hit by a pitch from Jessica Girsa. Cassidy Harriman got down a sacrifice bunt that allowed Martin to reach third with only one out. Kelsea Anair walked and stole second to put two runners in scoring position for Tilton, who drove them in with a base hit. Senior Kalah Patterson followed Tilton with an RBI double.
The Minutemen got a run back in the bottom of the inning on an Audrey Dunston single that drove in Lauren Jamo.
Richmond kept their offense going in the top of the second, knocking in four more runs to put them ahead 7-1. Junior left fielder Emily Douin drew a walk to lead off the inning. A single from second baseman Camryn Hurley and a wild pitch from Girsa set up a two run single from Martin. Martin stole second and third before scoring on a ball hit by Harriman, who also scored in the inning.
The Bobcats’ lead grew to eight in the top of the third on a two run single from Harriman.
The Minutemen fought back, scoring four runs in the bottom of the inning to bring them within four runs of the defending champion.
The rally started with a leadoff single from Jamo. Junior Cassidy McLeod hit a line drive that got by the center fielder, allowing her and Jamo to score. Junior Grace Farrington and Junior Maddie Morrison each singled later that inning, and a string of Richmond errors allowed them both to score.
McLeod led off the bottom of the fourth inning with a triple. Farrington drove her in with a single to center, but that’s as close as Stearns would come.
McLeod finished with four hits and two runs scored for the Minutemen, who finish their season 17-3.
Martin didn’t allow a run in the final three innings. She allowed 12 hits and one walk in her seven innings of work while striking out three.
“I thought to myself, ‘I’m just going to pitch my game. I’m going to mix up my pitches. I’m going to have my defense behind me,’” said Martin.
“Meranda is calm. She doesn’t let stuff rattle her,” said Coach Martin. “She’s a strong kid – strong minded. She can pull things together when things are going south.”
Richmond added to their lead in each of the final three innings, scoring one run in the fifth and sixth and four runs in the seventh.
Tilton and Patterson each finished with two doubles, a single, and three RBIs for Richmond. Martin helped herself with a triple, single, 2 RBIs and four runs scored.
“We hit. In practice, we hit, hit, hit, hit, hit,” said Coach Martin. “These girls probably get at least 200 swings a day, and it shows.”
Girsa allowed 16 hits, two walks and one hit batter in seven innings. She recorded nine strikeouts in the loss.
Girsa is one of only two seniors on the Stearns roster. The other is Jamo.
The title is the eighth in Richmond’s history and the fifth since 2010. The Bobcats beat Stearns in 2015, 9-4; LCS/MSSM in 2014, 11-5; Penobscot Valley in 2013, 3-0; and Deer Isle in 2010, 14-12.
Richmond only has three seniors on their team, so the majority of their roster will be returning. The seniors are Anair, Patterson and center fielder Autumn Accord.
“We’re going to be missing three seniors next year. Great kids. Great ballplayers. They’re great in all three sports, and we’re going to miss them,” said Coach Martin. “It’s going to be hard to fill their spots, but we’re going to do it. We’ll be right back here again.”
