Considering the mostly miserable weather, it was almost a blessing that the Lady Gladiators only needed an hour and 15 minutes to polish off Chincoteague 10-0 in a 4 1/2 inning slaughter rule state quarterfinal. With the win, RHS moves on to Friday's state semi-finals. Although there was plenty of speculation, no one seemed to know for sure where that game will be played, what time, or the opponent.
As the sparse crowd filed in for the 3:00 game, a strong wind was blowing rain directly into the face of the fans, making us wonder if the game might be facing a delay. The first technical gaffe of the day resulted in there being no available tape for a national anthem, so the two teams lined up against their respective sidelines and delivered an acapella version.
The rain fortunately subsided for the most part and the first few innings were competitive as RHS only led 3-0 after three. A pair of throwing errors led to the first two runs in the second, and a towering home run that cleared the left field fence with 50 feel to spare in the home half of the third gave the Gladiators their third score. Sorry I can't provide names because I did not see a roster anywhere (and it wouldn't have lasted anyway), and this was my first softball game of the year.
The Gladiators then broke it open in the fourth as they plated their final seven runs of the day. They had several solid hits, The Ponies misplaced two or three, and it was all over but the shouting. If not for a mildly controversial out at the plate, the damage might have been even worse.
Chincoteague did manage to get a base runner to third in the top of the fifth, and had they managed to bring her in, it might have kept the game going. But as fans were heading home or over to the soccer doubleheader that is still to come, it looked as if the biggest shower of the day was about to hit. So for the softball game, it was almost a case of all's well that ends well.
Although they suffered their first shutout of the season, the Ponies certainly can be proud of their 15-2 season and they appear to be a young team, so they might be right back in the thick of things next year.
Best wishes to the Lady Gladiators moving forward. They came close to a state title 2-3 seasons ago, so maybe they can break down that door this year, as the old saying goes.
As the sparse crowd filed in for the 3:00 game, a strong wind was blowing rain directly into the face of the fans, making us wonder if the game might be facing a delay. The first technical gaffe of the day resulted in there being no available tape for a national anthem, so the two teams lined up against their respective sidelines and delivered an acapella version.
The rain fortunately subsided for the most part and the first few innings were competitive as RHS only led 3-0 after three. A pair of throwing errors led to the first two runs in the second, and a towering home run that cleared the left field fence with 50 feel to spare in the home half of the third gave the Gladiators their third score. Sorry I can't provide names because I did not see a roster anywhere (and it wouldn't have lasted anyway), and this was my first softball game of the year.
The Gladiators then broke it open in the fourth as they plated their final seven runs of the day. They had several solid hits, The Ponies misplaced two or three, and it was all over but the shouting. If not for a mildly controversial out at the plate, the damage might have been even worse.
Chincoteague did manage to get a base runner to third in the top of the fifth, and had they managed to bring her in, it might have kept the game going. But as fans were heading home or over to the soccer doubleheader that is still to come, it looked as if the biggest shower of the day was about to hit. So for the softball game, it was almost a case of all's well that ends well.
Although they suffered their first shutout of the season, the Ponies certainly can be proud of their 15-2 season and they appear to be a young team, so they might be right back in the thick of things next year.
Best wishes to the Lady Gladiators moving forward. They came close to a state title 2-3 seasons ago, so maybe they can break down that door this year, as the old saying goes.
