Szczepanski Leads Great Bridge To Softball Title
The Lady Wildcats of Great Bridge High School Are All Smiles As They Celebrate Their Group AAA State Softball Championship Victory Over The Lady Vikings On Sunday Afternoon...
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Wildcat hurler Kaitlynn Szczepanski pitched a complete game 1 hit shut-out on Sunday in the Virginia State Group AAA Softball Championship. Szczepanski also singled in the only run of the game in the first inning...
Photo By: Dave Bernhardt / Gameday Magazine | VIEW GALLERY
Although the Vikings came up short in the State Championship game, Loudoun Valley's senior hurler Caroline Williams pitched admirably and did her best to keep her team in the game...
Photo By: Dave Bernhardt / Gameday Magazine | VIEW GALLERY
CHANTILLY, VA - Both Loudoun Valley and Great Bridge advanced to the Virginia AAA Softball State Championship game with the help of stout pitching.
And on Sunday afternoon on the campus of Westfield High School, pitching was dominant yet again. The Lady Wildcats though were able to muster a single first inning run. That, along with the outstanding complete game one-hitter from Kaitlynn Szczepanski gave Great Bridge (24-3) the championship over the Lady Vikings by a score of 1-0.
And the opening inning run-scoring single? That came courtesy of Szczepanski as well, giving the senior a game-winning RBI for the second consecutive contest. She also was responsible for the shut-out of Prince George in Saturday's semifinal along with a two-run walk-off home run in the bottom of the seventh.
All in all, not a bad way for the senior hurler to wrap up her high school career.
"It'll definitely be my best memory," said Szczepanksi, who is headed to Georgia Southern. "It's unbelievable."
The win marks Great Bridge's first state crown since they three-peated from 1998 through 2000.
Current Wildcat head coach Kirk Clayton was an assistant for those teams. He was the skipper in 2006 when they fell to eventual champion Hanover in the semifinals.
Overall, the 2009 campaign - one that included an Eastern Region title - could be best described as a joyful one for the man who knew this team best.
"(It's been) a lot of fun," Clayton said. "We kept our team intact for most of the year and they all came through."
Loudoun Valley placed Caroline Williams inside the pitcher's circle. The senior was one day removed from a heroic performance of her own. In a 2-0 victory Saturday in the semifinal match-up with South County, Williams held the Lady Stallions to four hits and also provided an RBI hit in the bottom of the sixth that broke a scoreless draw.
However, her streak of pitching zeros came to an end when Great Bridge took their first hacks. With two outs in the opening frame, Wildcat center fielder Jaclyn Paulk got a triple. Then, Szczepanksi singled her in. Clayton felt his team needed to put additional runs on the scoreboard.
"I thought we needed more than one run," he said. "We tried. We scrapped. (Williams) did a heck of a job. She was tough to hit."
But Szczepanski made sure the slim 1-0 lead would hold up.
She took a no-hitter into the bottom of the sixth inning, before ninth place batter and second baseman Amanda Horton broke it up with a single to left field.
"No-hitters are good, but I wasn't thinking about that," Szczepanski said. "I just cared about winning the game."
Szczepanksi wasn't affected by the hit. She recorded the game's final four outs, including a fly-out to left fielder Michelle Cook that sealed the outcome.
"(Szczepanski) kept us off-balance all night," said Loudoun Valley head coach Joe Spicer. "We never got a real good look at a ball. She changed speeds really well."
Szczepanski - the Southeastern District Softball Player of the Year - wasn't overpowering, which meant she needed help from her fielders when the ball was put in play. Those two elements have helped carry Great Bridge to where they stand now.
"We don't strike them all out," Clayton said. The defense behind them has always been good."
Loudoun Valley comes up short in trying to capture its third state crown in six seasons.
"Before the game, we knew that everybody could walk away afterwards feeling good about their year, but only one team could win it all," Spicer said. "That's just the way it is."
The Vikings were in the championship match for the first time since 2005, when they won the AA title. They performed the same feat in 2003.
