Bizarre double play bails out Lady Trojans in 7-5 win over Tabb

New Kent shortstop Paige Simpson tags out Tabb’s diving Casey Nicoletta to start the game-ending double play in the seventh inning.

Alan Chamberlain photos

A bizarre double play, occurring just when Tabb’s Tigers were poised to overtake New Kent, bailed out the Lady Trojans and preserved the hosts’ 7-5 softball victory today (March 28).

New Kent watched half of its four-run, 7-3 seventh and final inning advantage evaporate. But with one away and runners in scoring position at second and third base, Tabb’s bunt strategy aimed at catching the New Kent defense off-guard backfired.

“It shows who’s awake and who’s thinking,” said Lady Trojan coach Nicole O’Bier after the game-ending double play helped up her team’s record to 3-1. She added that crucial to the play’s success was a call blurted out seconds before that ordered the defense to prevent the Tabb runner on third from scoring.

“I’m glad we put an emphasis on ‘check her hard at third, check her hard at third,’” she said. “Normally, we’d be throwing to first.”

New Kent seemed to have the game under control leading 7-3 entering Tabb’s last chance at-bat in the top of the seventh. But the Tigers got runners to second and third with no outs and began to chip away. Morgan Woodell’s single brought in the first run, and another followed on a single by Casey Nicoletta.

With two Tigers aboard representing the tying runs and Caitlyn Bentley at the plate, the Lady Trojan defense got a force at third for the first out. Moments later, however, pitcher Brittany LaPrade uncorked a wild pitch with Skyler Crees in the batter’s box, enabling runners to take second and third.

Crees then laid down a bunt. Nicoletta, the runner at third, broke for the plate as LaPrade fielded the ball. LaPrade’s toss to catcher Stephanie Torrence caused Nicoletta to put on the brakes. Torrence chased Nicoletta back toward third before tossing to shortstop Paige Simpson covering the bag. Simpson tagged the diving Nicoletta for the second out.

An alert Simpson then turned toward second base where Crees had overtaken Bentley. Crees reversed direction, sprinting back toward first, but Simpson fired to first baseman Emily Angle who easily tagged the runner to complete the double play and end the game.

“We’ve had a lot of things unfold the past couple of days, and it’s brought us together and shows we can play as a team,” O’Bier said, declining to elaborate other than to say what unfolded were “team things.”

One of those “things” could have been the presence of LaPrade, the regular center fielder, in the pitcher’s circle in place of the usual starter, Marisa Bush. LaPrade went the distance for the win, giving up eight hits while striking out six and walking four.

LaPrade ran into early trouble with Tabb breaking on top 2-0 in the first inning. But the hosts battled back in the bottom of the frame. Peyton Fleming singled, LaPrade reached on a fielder’s choice, and both scored on an Angle single to even the affair.

Then the hosts surged in front in the fourth. Angle led off with a triple into the gap in left-center and put her team in front to stay on Madison Beasley’s one-hop double to the fence in left. Abby Spangler followed with a single to center, driving in Beasley. Dani Foster’s bouncing single between shortstop and third delivered Spangler for a 5-2 lead.

LaPrade reached base on an error in the fifth. Another error, this time on a Spangler grounder, enabled LaPrade to up the advantage to 6-2.

Tabb scored once in the sixth, but New Kent answered with Simpson’s RBI single scoring Foster (fielder’s choice) to set the stage for dramatic seventh inning finish.

“Our bats needed to come alive,” O’Bier said, pointing to her team’s nine-hit effort. “Hopefully this will be the start of the bats going for the rest of the season.

“We’re all good to go,” she said. “The girls stepped up and did their job.”

Lady Trojan centerfielder Abby Spangler makes a running grab on a fifth inning line drive to right center off the bat of Tabb’s Kendall Woodell. Right fielder Dani Foster (3) closes to help.