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Revenge is a dish best served cold: Plano flips result in regional finals rematch
BY Kevin Hageland, khageland@acnpapers.com
Tuesday night’s softball game between Plano Senior and Hebron held far more importance for the Lady Wildcats than what the second game of the 8-5A season usually would.
And it was about more than just the fact that Plano entered the game ranked No. 2 in the state by the Texas Girls Coaches Association and Hebron came in at No. 8.
For the Lady Wildcats, it was about facing the team that prevented them from extending the longest playoff run in program history. Hebron had defeated Plano, 6-2, in Game 3 of the Region I Finals on May 29, 2010, to advance to the Class 5A State Tournament.
And Plano, a squad that includes junior Morgan Richards, sophomores Ashlee Begis, Julia Knight and freshman Tori Seasor, got its revenge thanks to 1-0 victory that was predicated on stout pitching, aggressive running and a clutch bunt.
The game was scoreless in the bottom of the fifth when junior Kristen Miles stepped to the dish. Junior Chelsea Sartor, the courtesy runner for junior Katie Hart, was on at third base and took off for the plate on a suicide squeeze by Miles. Sartor reached home safely and gave Plano a 1-0 lead.
That lead would become final thanks in part to Knight as the left fielder threw out a Hebron runner headed for home, her second such putout in three games.
That was all the help Kat Batey needed.
The Plano junior pitcher outdueled Hebron standout hurler Heather Stearns by allowing one walk and seven hits while striking out eight hitters in the shutout. Stearns allowed only six hits with Miles and Lady Wildcats junior Jill Holub both going 2-for-3.
“Both pitchers were on tonight,” Zea said. “Kat and Heather both pitched awesome.”
Stearns’ effectiveness in the circle is reflected by the fact that she held Plano to one run just days after the Lady Wildcats scored 65 total runs in six games en route to winning the McKinney ISD Tournament over the weekend. That run included a 20-8 shellacking of district rival Flower Mound Marcus, No. 6 in the state, and an 8-6 victory over No. 10-ranked Round Rock Stony Point. The MISD Tournament title came a week after Plano posted a 5-0 run at the Allen Invitational and outscored its opponents by a combined mark of 37-12.
“After we won three really great games on Saturday (in McKinney) we had to watch out for a potential letdown,” Zea said. “But these girls are so focused and they have been playing so well.”
The weekend tournament was special for Zea outside of her team taking the top spot as the Plano coach also reached a milestone in her tenure with the Lady Wildcats.
“The girls played great and I got my 200th win at Plano,” Zea said, “so it was a very special weekend for sure.”
There hasn’t been much time to celebrate though as Plano faces another tough 8-5A foe at 7 p.m. Friday when it travels to face Flower Mound.
“Every game in this district is like a playoff game,” Zea said, “so we can’t take one night off.”
Cross-town showdown goes to Eastsiders
Plano wasn’t the only local team to pick up a key 8-5A victory Tuesday night as Plano East defeated Plano West, 5-2.
The Lady Wolves are ranked No. 5 in the state while the Lady Panthers dropped from No. 2 to No. 16 this past week in the poll despite not losing a game over the last seven days.
East went in front, 2-0, in the first inning before West eventually drew even.
“I think we started out a little nervous and were lucky to only be down 2-0 after the first inning,” said Mike Ledsome, West head coach. “It was a great ballgame after that. We knew it would come down to which team made mistakes and it did; we gave East extra outs and they capitalized on them.”
East scored twice in the fifth inning before sophomore KK Stevens put the finishing touches on the 5-2 Lady Panthers victory with a solo home run in the sixth.
“I loved the effort and the way we competed,” Ledsome said. “I told the girls it’s nothing to be ashamed of, because we lost to a very good team, but we have to move on and focus on the next game.”
West is back in action at 7 p.m. Friday when it hosts Marcus while East is on the road against Allen at the same time.
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