Lakeland In Seventh Heaven

A-2 softball

Something magical happened to the Lakeland High School girls softball team every time the seventh inning flashed on the Memorial Field scoreboard Saturday.

Although no one could explain it, the Hawks became as fierce and attacking as their namesake in the last inning and swooped away with a 6-5 victory over Moscow in the State A-2 invitational softball championship game.

Lakeland battled for the championship after a dramatic semifinal victory over Emmett that ended on a home run by Angie Tweedy. The Bears routed Middleton 8-1 in the other morning semifinal to meet the Hawks.

Teams from Districts 1-3 played in Coeur d’Alene. Districts 4-6 held their own event in Pocatello.

Lakeland 6, Moscow 5

The Hawks got two quick runs in the top of the first behind back-to-back doubles by Tweedy and Jessica McBride. Monica Hall was effective on the mound early for Lakeland. Hall was pitching her second game of the day after a complete game against Emmett.

“Monica’s got the guts to win, so I wanted to go with her as long as I could,” Lakeland coach Danielle Bean said.

The Bears finally got to Hall in the fourth inning as Marisa Swank scored on two Hall wild pitches to make it 2-1. Lakeland answered with a run in the fifth, but it looked as though its chances of a state title slipped away in the sixth. In that inning, the Bears took advantage of two Hawks errors to score four runs and take a 5-3 lead.

Lakeland’s Jacque Foster led off off the seventh with a single and eventually scored on a error by Jenny Moslemi, who had been stellar in the field. Shawnee Nicklas scored after Foster, and Tweedy once again was the winning run.

“Tweedy has worked hard all year, and if anyone deserved to have a big day, it was her,” Bean said.

Hall was replaced in the sixth by her younger sister, Tiffany, and the freshman held off the Bears in the seventh to pick up the win.

The Bears ended the year 13-11; the Hawks are 22-2.

Lakeland 2, Emmett 1

In the most exciting game of the day, the players with tears streaming down their faces were not the losing Mustangs, but rather the Hawks.

The tears of joy came after Tweedy’s dramatic two-run homer completed a shocking turn of events that began and ended in the seventh.

Emmett pitcher Stacey Andrews was incredible through six innings, facing the minimum 18 batters. The Mustangs drew first blood in the sixth inning as Becky Petrie scored to take a 1-0 lead.

In the bottom of the seventh, Nicklas led off with a triple and then Tweedy stepped up and ended it with a shot to center.

“They hadn’t hit the ball all game, so it was a totally unexpected way to lose,” Emmett coach Kim Zilner said.

Tweedy was mobbed after crossing home plate and Emmett (20-5) could only stare in disbelief.

“I knew that was the pitch,” Tweedy said. “Coach told me before I batted that I deserved it and I was shaking as I walked to the plate.”

Moscow 8, Middleton 1

The Bears rode the pitching of Sarah Wagner and the bat of catcher Erin Makus for their second win of the tourney. Makus went 2 for 3 with a triple and scored twice. Wagner allowed just one run on nine hits.

Emmett 12, Middleton 0

Emmett won the consolation title in five innings.