Battling back from a slow start Wednesday on the road against Mt. Hebron, River Hill moved one step closer to achieving something the program hasn't accomplished since 2001.
Sparked by a four-run fourth inning, the Hawks (13-0, 15-1) went on to earn an 8-2 victory over the Vikings (12-3, 13-4) to stay undefeated in league play and move just one win away from locking up at least a share of the first county championship for River Hill softball in 14 years. Mt. Hebron and Howard (12-3, 14-4) are now tied for second place, three games behind.
"It's pretty exciting … we've had a lot of years where we've been close, finishing second or third," said River Hill coach Marni Rosenbaum, who was a senior on the River Hill team that won the first softball county title in school history in 1998. "We still have to go out there and win our last few games and Atholton, who we have tomorrow, has played some good teams pretty tough. But, yeah, it's awesome to see the girls playing so well and doing it in big situations like today."
Mt. Hebron had the look early on of a team poised to hand the Hawks their first county loss of the spring.
Vikings' pitcher Evvie Buehlman racked up five strikeouts and stranded two runners on base in each of the first two innings. On the other side, Mt. Hebron capitalized on a pair of River Hill first-inning defensive errors — an overthrow and a hard-hit ball by Maddie Bennett that bounced off the second baseman — to go ahead, 1-0.
Even when River Hill plated its first run in the third inning to tie things up, courtesy of an RBI walk from Emily Hazzard, Mt. Hebron answered right back. In the bottom of the third, Buehlman got on with a double and then came around to score on an RBI double from Rylee Kinsella that made it 2-1.
That lead, however, turned out to be the last of the day for the Vikings.
In the top of the fourth, River Hill ended up sending nine batters to the plate and scoring four times to grab a 5-2 advantage. Back-to-back walks by Jalyn Cox and Courtney Colosimo set the table for Kinsey Johnson to deliver a 2-RBI double to center. Kristy Selby followed with an RBI double of her own and would eventually come around to score on a wild pitch with two outs.
"I think as the game went on we were able to see some things on the field that allowed us to be successful," Rosenbaum said. "As a team, I think it was a matter of taking whatever they were going to give us whether that was walks, getting hit by a pitch or hitting to the holes in their defense. I've said it before, Mt. Hebron is a good team so you have to make the most of your chances."
River Hill tacked on three more runs in the fifth inning. This time it was a Colosimo single that set up the first run, as she eventually came around to score by stealing home. Later in the frame, a 2-RBI single by Kallan Dirmeyer made it 8-2.
While the Hawks' offense was heating up, River Hill pitcher Sabrina Curtiss was settling down. The senior didn't allow any runs over the final four innings and surrendered just four hits and no walks during that stretch.
She was particularly efficient in the seventh, getting three straight fly-ball outs to secure the win.
"They got to her a little in the first inning, but there wasn't a lot she could do about those so she really just had to shake it off and move forward," Rosenbaum said. "We talked about trusting that the defense was going to have her back, like they have all season, and I think that helped her settle down."
Rosenbaum added praise for Sara Mascone's overall defense behind the plate, and big individual defensive plays from Cox and Caroline Hickey in the middle of the infield.
River Hill has a pair of double headers left on the schedule to wrap-up the regular season. The Hawks are scheduled to play Atholton twice on Thursday and then Wilde Lake twice on Monday.
River Hill 8, Mt. Hebron 2
123 456 7 R-H-E
RH 001 430 0 8-7-2
MH 101 000 0 2-7-2
Other scores:
Glenelg 8, Long Reach 2
The Gladiators scored seven of their eight runs in the first three innings and rolled the rest of the way.
Breanne Smith delivered both RBI in the first inning and then Allison Wilcox, Gabriela Mistichelli and Smith (double) had the big hits in the second.
Anna Turvin got the win at pitcher, allowing just one hit in the four innings that she pitched. Gabrielle Browne, who got her first varsity win a day earlier against Oakland Mills, came on in relief for the final three innings for Glenelg.
123 456 7 R-H-E
LR 000 000 2 2-7-5
G 241 001 x 8-12-0
Atholton 7, Marriotts Ridge 6 (8 inn)
The Mustangs forced extra innings behind a three-run bottom of the seventh that included a 3-RBI triple by Lauren Biro (3 hits, double, triple). But in the extra frame, Atholton scored twice and then held on to limit Marriotts Ridge to just one run in the bottom half to secure the win.
Senior Jenny Mathews was a big key early on at pitcher, going 6 1/3 innings and leaving with a 5-2 lead. Patty Drumheller ended up coming on in relief and earning the win.
Senior Amanda Petersen was a leader all around, going 2-4 with 2 RBI and a run scored. She also made a run-saving catch at shortstop early in the game. Sophomore Bethy Medina went 2-4 with a triple and two runs scored.
Other Raider standouts were Danielle Dolbow (2-3, RBI, big catch in centerfield), Miranda Thompson (2-5, run), Drumheller (1-2, 2 walks, 2 runs) and Ceara Mercilliott (2-5, RBI).
123 456 78 R-H-E
A 013 100 02 7-11-0
MR 110 000 31 6-9-2
Howard 13, Oakland Mills 1 (6 inn)
The Lions got the win behind pitcher Ally Wieman, who had seven strikeouts in six innings. Big offensive days for Howard came from Steph Yarrish (4 RBI), Rachel Oliver (3 RBI) and Kayla Devin (2 RBI). Emma Braswell and Katie Unkle also had multi-hit games.
Eugena Jones had a pair of hits to serve as one of the offensive leaders for Oakland Mills.
123 456 R-H-E
Ho 310 423 13-22-0
OM 001 000 1-6-5
Hammond 6, Wilde Lake 3
Trailing midway through the game, the Golden Bears used a four-run bottom of the fifth inning to create the separation needed to earn the win.
The fifth inning for Hammond, which came after Becky Straub came on in relief and retired the side in order, started with back-to-back bunt singles by Kelly Smith and Caroline Goyne. Bethany Hewitt then reached via error to load the bases.
From there, Emily Dowdall hit a SAC fly and Straub and Karina LaCroix followed with RBI singles to quickly create the final three-run margin.
Hammond got its earlier runs on a bases loaded walk by Sophie Baldwin that scored Dowdall, along with a fielder's choice by Dowdall that plated Goyne.
Wilde Lake was led by seniors Cierra Lester (2-3, 2 RBI), Mekayla Tucker (1-1, RBI), Marissa Sciabarra (1-3, run) and sophomore Faith Leslie (1-2, double, walk, 2 runs).
123 456 7 R-H-E
WL 010 200 0 3-5-2
Ha 011 040 x 6-6-3
Reservoir 6, Centennial 1
The Eagles struck first, having Josefine Jensen drive in Jordan Burk (triple) in the third inning, but the Gators eventually got going and earned the comeback win.
Emily Lloyd got the win at pitcher, firing a complete game with seven hits allowed and two strikeouts. She also paced the offense with a 3-3 day with a team-high 2 RBI.
Carly Clarke, Anna Bennett and Holly Daum each also had multi-hit games for the Gators. Clarke, Bennett and Erica Caporaletti (1-2, 2 runs, RB) had doubles.
123 456 7 R-H-E
C 001 000 0 1-7-1
Re 000 321 x 6-11-1
Glenelg 14, Oakland Mills 3 (Tuesday)
The Gladiators started with seven runs in the first inning and never slowed down. Toni Pritchard had a huge day, going 4-4 with 4 RBI to pace the offense. Gabrielle Browne picked up her first varsity win while striking out seven.
Gabriela Mistichelli added three hits, while Breanne Smith chipped in three RBI.
123 45 R-H-E
OM 111 00 3-5-0
G 722 3x 14-14-5
Mt. Hebron 18, Wilde Lake 0 (Tuesday)
The Vikings got strong pitching from Maddie Bennett and Paige Mallin, with Bennett striking out 10 and allowing only two runners (walk and error). Rylee Kinsella and Meghan Holquist each had 4 RBI. Rachel Cadigan, Evvie Buehlman, Maddie Bennett and Steph Bluhm all reached base four times.