For five hours, 13 minutes it was hard to believe that one of the two teams were going home.
But after 494 pitches were thrown between the games start, 8:05 Sunday night, and its finish, 1:18 Monday morning, it was the Massachusetts softball team on the wrong end of a 6-1, 15-inning loss.
“Well that was an epic and I have some very, very distraught people on my hands right now,” UMass coach Elaine Sortino said slowly after the game. “They gave it everything that they had and somebody was going to have to lose and unfortunately it was us.”
On the other end was Washington (44-11), who was held scoreless from the second inning until they pushed five across the plate in the bottom of the 15th inning. The win advances the Huskies on to the NCAA Super Regionals to face Georgia Tech.
“When we got the bid to come out here, obviously we were disappointed because we didn’t get to host, but more I knew how good Brandice Balschmiter was,” Washington coach Heather Tarr said. “The NCAA has a hard job but I think both of our teams didn’t deserve a matchup in the first round.”
For the Minutewomen (41-10), they almost kept the game tied at one apiece in the top of the 15th despite facing a bases loaded, one-out jam. Balschmiter got the leadoff hitter in the 15th to ground out but then allowed three straight singles to load the bases. Balschmiter followed by striking out Bailey Stenson looking, and then with two-outs UMass’ ace got the groundball she needed to get out of the jam.
Third basemen Whitney Mollica fielded the ball cleanly and glanced to second before firing to first. The glance to second was just enough to let Washington’s Jenn Salling beat the throw to first, breaking the tie.
Two singles later, Washington had broken the 1-1 tie that had been unbroken since the fourth inning into a 6-1 lead.
For 14 2/3 innings the story of the game was Washington’s Danielle Lawrie and UMass’ Balschmiter – two of the three active pitchers with over 1,000 career strikeouts in the NCAA.
“I honestly don’t think I got tired once, I knew there were certain times where I needed a little bit more focus or find something to just throw all my energy at it and just go for it,” Balscmiter said. “That was one of the toughest battles I’ve ever faced.”
Beyond a lead off triple in the first inning off Balschmiter by second basemen Ashley Charters, who later scored on a fly out to right field which Davina Hernandez grabbed over the fence, Balschmiter held the Huskies at bay until the 15th inning. Lawrie’s only hiccup came on the first pitch of the fourth inning as UMass’ Samantha Salato hit her 19th homerun of the season to right field.
Lawrie would give up another six hits in the game, as well as six walks, but would strike out a career-high 24 batters as she held the Minutewomen to one run over 15 innings. Balschmiter finished the night giving up 15 hits and six runs while striking out 14 and walking just one. And after the game, the two would have a moment on the field.
“Going through the line there was definitely a respect mutual moment,” Balschmiter said. “We both pitched our hearts out tonight, it was one of the best games I’ve ever played, one of the best pitching duels I’ve ever seen.”
As masterful as Balschmiter was, so was her defense. Twice in extra innings, the Minutewomen’s defense threw a Huskie base runner out at home. In the top of the ninth, with Salling at third and one-out, Balschmiter induced a groundball to second basemen Kyllie Magill. Magill quickly turned and fired home where catcher Jessica Serio was blocking the plate, and tagged Salling out.
Again in the top of the 10th, UMass found itself in a jam with one out and a runner on third. Balschmiter induced another groundball, this time to shortstop Whitney Williams, who fired home to Serio to get the out.
“We had the most amazing defense. I’ve never seen a game where we have come up with those plays. Kyllie Magill at second base coming up huge; I’ve never seen her make plays like that,” Balschmiter said. “The highlight of my career was watching her get that girl out at home. I’ve never seen better defense played behind me before.”
The Minutewomen had their share of scoring opportunities as well, but Lawrie kept some of UMass’ best bats quiet. UMass’ leadoff hitter and the Atlantic 10 Player of the Year, Carly Normandin, was held hitless as she went 0-for-7 with six strikeouts. Even Whitney Mollica who had been leading most hitting categories of the Amherst Regional went 0-for-7 with one strikeout.
For five of the Minutewomen – Balschmiter, Mollica, Salato, Hernandez and Carly Morin – the loss marked the final game of their career. It also marked the end of a career for some of the best to ever wear the UMass jersey.
In the first game on Sunday, a 5-1 UMass win over Washington to force the winner-take-all final, Mollica broke the UMass runs batted in record when she hit a three-run home run over the left-field wall to give her 156 career RBIs. Salato’s three homeruns in the regional pushed her to second for all-time home runs for UMass with 32 and extended her single-season home run record to 19. Lastly is Balschmiter who is UMass’ all-time win leader with 126 and second in school history in strikeouts with 1,218.
But for those seniors, they can at least say that they left everything on the field in what was their final collegiate game.
“At one point when we had lost this season I went in to coach and I said, ‘Don’t tell me about the World Series until we deserve to be told’”, Mollica said. “Tonight we deserved to be told we’re a World Series team. I don’t care they won, congratulations, but we’re a great team.”
Jeffrey R. Larnard can be reached at jlarnard@dailycollegian.com.
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