The girls of Sno-Valley North Little League 9-10 Softball All Stars brought home the State Championship on Monday, July 25, going 4-1 in the Washington State 9-10 All Star Tournament in Poulsbo.
To get there, the girls dominated in the District 9 Championship, defeating Issaquah/Sammamish 5-0, Eastlake 10-0, and defeating Bellevue East/Thunderbird twice, 7-4 and 4-0.
The three Sno-Valley North pitchers, Elaine Townley, Lauren Rich and Cassidy Derieg, pitched an incredible combined 43 strike outs in the four District 9 Tournament games, averaging almost 11 strikeouts per game.
In game one of the state tournament, the Sno-Valley North team took on the Lewis River-District 6 All Star Champions. Again, the pitchers brought the heat and combined for 13 strikeouts in the
game. Both Rich and Townley got on base and crossed home plate four times each in this game, giving their team a combined eight runs. Both Mikayla Davidson and Michaela Carter brought in two RBIs, while Hailey Hoke knocked in three. Derieg sealed the deal with an amazing five RBIs in the game that included a walk-off three-run homerun in the fifth inning for a decisive 14-3 victory.
In their second game, they faced off against the District 8 Champions, Woodinville/Woodinville West All Stars. Sno-Valley North cranked up their defense with the pitchers delivering 10 strike outs and two bullets thrown by third baseman Taeler Gerde to first for two outs. Catcher Davidson picked off two runners with two spectacular throw-downs to the short stop, Townley, for two additional outs. With timely hits and aggressive base running, the girls were able to manufacture five runs to come out on top with a 5-2 win.
On Friday the Sno-Valley girls took on the District 4 Champions, Cascade Little League, in a nail biter. The All Stars scored the only run of the game in the first inning when Derieg batted in Rich. The game was a defensive battle with the Sno-Valley pitchers delivering an impressive 12 K’s in the game.
In the championship game, the Sno-Valley All Stars faced their strongest opponent yet in the South Snohomish All Stars from District 1. The strong hitters from South Snohomish responded to the Sno-Valley challenge by only allowing 2 strike outs in the game. The South Snohomish All Stars left the field with a 3-9
win over the Sno-Valley North All Stars, handing them their first defeat in a stunner and forcing the final tie-breaking game on Monday.
Not to be denied, both teams took the field with intensity and conviction on Monday night. Snider Field rocked with anticipation as the All Stars of Sno-Valley North and South Snohomish took the field to settle, once and for all, who would be the Washington state champions. Derieg on first base and Carter on second base proved to be a deadly combination, earning a critical seven outs in the game. On the mound, Townley took charge of the game with an impressive 11 strike outs and only two hits. Right fielder Hoke came through for her team with two perfectly placed singles, scoring both RBIs for Sno-Valley North. The girls of the 9-10 Sno-ValleyNorth All Stars came out on top to defeat the South Snohomish team in a hard won 2-1 victory, clinching the title of Washington State 9-10 softball champions for 2011.
