LATE RALLY LEADS TO FIRST STATE BERTH FOR TROJAN SOFTBALL

Christmas came early for the young Hillsboro High softball team. The Trojans capitalized on six Council Grove errors to score seven runs in the top of the sixth inning, propelling them to a 9-5 regional championship victory Wednesday evening at Marion.

The win marks the first state-tournament berth in program history for HHS.

Hillsboro was trailing 5-2 entering the sixth. Tara Hein?richs started the improbable rally by reaching first base on an error by the Braves? third baseman. Taylor Nikkel and Courtney Weber also reached on errors to load the bases.

Bri Loewen?s ground ball forced out pinch runner Jessica Elliott at home plate. But an error in right field on a ball hit by Franny Gottsch brought Nikkel home for the first run of the inning.

Steph Sanders followed with a ground-ball single up the middle to score Weber, and then Loewen scored on an infield single by Amy Bartel. Gottsch scored the fourth and go-ahead run on an error by the second baseman on a ball hit by pinch-hitter Aubrey Meier.

Krista Reimer then delivered a bases-loaded double to left field that chased home Sanders, Bartel and Meier, putting Hillsboro ahead 9-5.

Two successive ground outs finally ended Council Grove?s debacle.

Weber, who came into pitch in relief of Gottsch in the bottom of the fourth, kept the Braves scoreless over the last two innings on three hits to pick up the victory.

Hillsboro had taken a 1-0 lead in the first inning. Nikkel and Weber started the game with back-to-back singles. After a fly out, Gottsch reached on a fielder?s choice, loading the bases. Then the Braves? right fielder couldn?t hang on to Sanders? pop fly near the right-field line, enabling Nikkel to score.

But Council Grove came right back against Gottsch in the bottom of the inning. A combination of three singles and two Trojan errors led to a four-run surge.

The Braves pushed the lead to 5-1 in the third inning on a walk followed by a double to deep center.

Hillsboro crept to 5-2 in the fifth when Loewen led off with a single, Gottsch dropped a bloop single behind first base and Sanders stroked a ground-ball out that scored Loewen.

The Trojans? regional championship was a sweet reward for a young team that wasn?t expected to accomplish a lot this season with a starting lineup of six freshmen, a sophomore and a junior.

The Trojans will take a 13-10 record to Manhattan next Friday for their inaugural state-tournament appearance.

With the softball victory, and assuming the Trojans qualify at least one entry in the regional track meet this Friday, this will mark the first time Hillsboro High School has been represented at the state level by all five of its spring sports teams: softball, baseball, golf, tennis and track.

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