Two things you’d like to happen when you’re playing your final game at home: win and have the contest meander along, maybe going on forever. The former did take place, April 18, as the Llano Lady Jackets knocked out Ingram, 10-0. It not only didn’t approach eternity, it was a five-inning KO--merciful in the rule book only.
“It’s hard knowing this was our last game here,” four-year varsity member Jordana Miiller said with both eyes dotted and moist. Leslie Weihs, another heart-and-soul combatant for three seasons, fought off her emotions and declared: “We spent a lot of hours practicing and we put a lot into this. It’s tough to realize this was it.”
Miiller certainly made the most of her swan song in front of the home folks. She SING led in Chelsea Montgomery in the first inning. Jordana was off and running toward a four-hit, four-RBI performance. She’s six-for-her-last-six at-bats, and she's been on base seven consecutive plate appearances.
News Flash!! Cierra Thompson had all the runs (run?) she'd require, as she fired her second no-hitter of the year. Justin Gonzales may call this a career night: she was safe on an error and walked, but no other teammate reached base. Gonzales did not strike out, but every other Warrior did as Thompson fanned 12. No foe hit the ball out of the infield.
“I was off a bit,” Cierra mentioned, making you wonder what kind of a game she would have pitched if she’d been ON, for crying out loud! About the overall picture, CT pointed out: “We’ve grown as a team; we get along, and we really like each other.” That has certainly shown in 15 district victories in 18 games the past two seasons.
Back at the plate, Montgomery, the only junior on board, (isn’t that odd?) had a base hit in the second frame; she was in the midst of a three-for-three engagement, and she walked once. The Jackets added two runs; they would score in all five innings.
Two more came home in the third as Kelsie Simpson tripled to the fence in right centerfield. The sophomore second baseman has five three-base hits this season. The one we’re discussing drove in Katie Yeager who had singled, and a Thompson safety chased in Simpson.
The Senior Seven’s Success and Sadness: “That group,” head coach Brian Cottle noted with a sigh and with fondness, “you build a bond with them. The terrible thing is they graduate; you don’t like it but you live with it. I love ‘em like they were my own, because basically that's what they are.”
Those trading jerseys for diplomas next month: Monica Bigger, Blair Schorck, Emily Schendel, Lauryn Looney, and Thompson, Weihs, and Miiller.
The Jackets got three more runs in the fourth inning as Cierra and Jordana had singles, and Montgomery and Yeager had doubles. Yeager was two-for-three, on base three times and she scored twice. Schendel and Miiller got the game’s 12th and 13th hits in the fifth inning, and when Weihs walked with the bases loaded, the ten-run advanrage was established, and the cheers and tears ensued.
“This is our field,” Weihs said, “but it’s fun to go elsewhere and show others what we're made of.” She and the rest of the Cottle collection will get that opportunity, 7 p.m., April 24, at Hays High School in Buda. Llano will take on Luling in a one-game bidistrict, the opening round of the playoffs.
The Black and Orange, displaying its colors in the postseason for the third year in a row, wound up 7-2 in 25-3A while Wimberley is champion with an 8-1 mark.
“Everyone will be pumped up for Luling,” Thompson predicted. “There are plenty of seniors, and there will be a lot of intensity.” Cierra’s intense play resulted in a 5-1 district mark, and she struck out 77 in 43 innings.
Miiller, a major reason Llano advanced to the region quartertfinals in 2007, on this Spring’s state tournament: “Our experience will help; we know we can go far.” Schendel’s contribution: “It was a fun ride at home, but the season certainly hasn’t ended; we should have confidence and heart in the playoffs.”