by Freddie Clark
DigitalSports Photographer/Contributor
Erin Anderson provided an RBI double with two outs in the top of the first inning driving in Kelly Penny, leading Deep Run to a 5-0 victory over Midlothian in the Central Region final Friday night.
Deep Run pitcher Heather Lewis continued her stellar performance in the circle, allowing two hits and striking out five in a complete-game effort in front of a stellar defense.
Deep Run needed every bit of it as Midlothian’s Krista Townsend had five strikeouts as well and the Trojans defense came up with clutch plays.
But the Wildcats delivered four runs in the seventh to give Lewis space to finish the job.
“They are aggressive. They are the same type of team we are and they will take any opportunity you give them to get the extra base; if you get thrown out you get thrown out,” Midlothian coach Denise Manuel said. “They got more runners on tonight and they did what they are supposed to do and we didn’t.”
What Deep Run was supposed to do was be one of the top teams in the Central Region.
But it seemed like the Wildcats forgot that at some point, dropping six of 10 games to end the regular campaign.
Now they’ve ran off six straight victories to claim the Colonial District and Central Region tournaments.
“I think we have something to prove. This was our goal all along and they worked toward this goal,” Deep Run coach Stu Brown said. “These girls worked hard. They work hard every day. That’s what baffled me during our losing streak is that these girls worked hard every day.”
There’s still work to be done by both teams in the state Group AAA tournament.
Deep Run will have a home game Tuesday versus Northwest runner-up Loudoun Valley.
A young Midlothian team will travel to Northwest champ Battlefield, a 1-0 winner over Loudoun Valley in its championship.
Championship is a word Midlothian didn’t have in its crosshairs at the beginning of the season, but constant improvement made it happen.
“The beginning of the season we did not know what our expectations were,” Manuel said. “We were just kind of pining along, ‘Let’s try to make the tournament.’
“We set our goals as we go along and try to get them and with the exception of tonight we did.”
Deep Run 100 000 4 – 5 7 1
Midlothian 000 000 0 – 0 2 5
Lewis and Anderson; Townsend and Edmunds
Records: Deep Run (20-6); Midlothian (20-5)
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