EUGENE — The Sheldon Irish won back-to-back championships to end the Cinderella run of the Glencoe Crimson Tide with a 5-0 victory Saturday in the Oregon Class 6A softball championship.
The second-seeded Irish had been dominant all tournament, allowing just one run in their path to the championship game before Payton Burnham secured the title with a no-hitter Saturday at Jane Sanders Stadium.
“It makes it really easy,” Burnham said about pitching with her defense behind her. “I trust my team a thousand percent. And my catcher works her butt off every single day for me and I just couldn’t be happier to be a part of this team.”
The No. 21 seed Crimson Tide had gotten hot at the right time to knock off three of the top five seeds on their way to the championship, but they had their run cut short of the finish line.
Sheldon wasted no time in getting on the board. Brooke Peterson reached first on a fielding error, then a triple by Kinley Pappas opened the scoring before Glencoe could record an out. A sacrifice groundout brought Pappas home to make the score 2-0 early. The Crimson Tide got out of the inning without further damage but still found themselves playing from behind heading into the second.
“It makes a huge difference,” Sheldon coach Avery Morehead-Hutsell said. “If you go off with explosive energy, it really just sets the tone and continues to make that momentum go up for the girls.”
After two consecutive 1-2-3 innings from Burnham to start the game in the circle, Glencoe finally got a runner on base after a throwing error in the top of the third. The Crimson Tide’s Isabel Hill then advanced to second base on a wild pitch to get into scoring position. Burnham recovered to strike out the final two batters, however, and keep the score at 2-0.
Glencoe kept the Irish offense from adding to the lead in the third, but the Crimson Tide’s defense was tested once again in the fourth. Avery Coffin led off the inning with a single. She looked poised to score on a double to deep right field from Ashlyn Martin, but Glencoe threw her out at home.
Sheldon was not going to fumble its opportunity to add to the lead that easily, though. Soraya Dorsey singled to put Martin on third base. The Crimson Tide had a chance to end the inning on a ball from Kara Gebb, but a fielding error allowed Gebb to reach safely, and Martin scored to make it 3-0.
Another chance to get on the board presented itself for Glencoe in the top of the fifth. The Crimson Tide got runners on first and second after having a batter walked and hit by a pitch. But the Irish shut down the rally attempt once again, this time with a double play to end the inning.
“Payton’s a phenomenal pitcher,” Morehead-Hutsell said. “But her defense behind her is really phenomenal. They would do anything for her to protect those balls that she produces on the field. I can’t say enough about her defense, they’re pretty amazing.”
Sheldon did not slow down its offensive onslaught, looking to eliminate any hope of a comeback in the last few innings. Pappas singled to right field, then advanced to second on a throwing error to put pressure on the defense immediately. She advanced to third as Burnham singled to put two runners on base. After Burnham advanced to second on a groundout, Martin singled right up the middle to score two runs and take a commanding 5-0 lead.
“I’ve been hitting a lot recently and really working hard on my swing,” Martin said. “Just going up with the same mentality of staying relaxed and just getting the job done has really helped.”
Both teams recorded 1-2-3 innings in the sixth, making a massive seventh inning rally for the Crimson Tide necessary if they wanted to finish their postseason run with a storybook ending.
That ending was not to be as Burnham recorded her fourth 1-2-3 inning of the day to complete her no-hitter.
Burnham was given player of the game honors in the game for the Irish after her incredible performance. On the other side, Crimson Tide pitcher Bailey Farrimond took home player of the game honors for her team after allowing seven hits and five runs in six innings.
-- Joe Moore for The Oregonian/OregonLive
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