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Softball: Repeating history: Hawks one win away from state tourney
By Justin Thomas, jthomas@starlocalnews.com
Hebron's softball team is hoping the third time is in fact the charm Friday when the Hawks take on Plano East with a berth in the UIL Class 5A State Tournament on the line.
The teams squared off twice during District 8-5A competition with the Lady Panthers emerging victorious on each occasion. However, Hebron is hopeful this time will be different as the team enters the contest riding a nine-game winning streak.
"East is definitely a great team," said Staci Jackson, Hebron head coach. "They have a good pitcher and everyone knows they can really hit the ball. They're a real power team. But I feel like since our last regular season game against Marcus, when we needed to win, we've just been climbing and climbing. We've continued to get better and I think the biggest thing for us is that we've had a different player step up and contribute each game."
The Hawks are in position to take on East after sweeping their Region I Semifinal series Friday and Saturday against El Paso Americas at Texas Tech in Lubbock. Hebron took Game 1, 7-0, before closing out Americas in Game 2, 6-2.
"It was a great weekend for us," Jackson said. "We picked up a couple of wins to move on and I think the kids really enjoyed the atmosphere and getting to play on a college field like we did at Tech. They might have had some nerves playing on a big stage like that, but they sure didn't show it. We started out very well."
While Heather Stearns was her dominant self in the circle, picking up both wins with 16 combined strikeouts, the Hawks brought their bats as well.
Hebron hit two homers in each of the wins, receiving long balls from Stearns, Chelsea Herndon, Deja Talton and Sarah Flores. There were runners on base for both Herndon's and Talton's homers, while Flores picked up her first long-ball of the season.
"We hit the ball very well, especially in the first game," Jackson said. "And that's not a discredit to their pitchers either.
"We hit four homers in the series, but we really could have hit three or four more. Heather had a couple that were hit well, but I think they stayed in the park because there was strong wind blowing in. And she had another one that she hit out, but it was just foul."
Jackson added she was pleased with the way Hebron dealt with the different looks.
"They had one girl start the first game and then switched in about the fifth inning," she said. "And they did the reverse in the second game. They both had very different styles, too, so I was glad to see how we adjusted within each game."
Hebron also executed its short game.
"We were able to get our bunts down," Jackson said. "We put a lot of pressure on and when we got people on base, we were able to move them around."
Hebron continued to make strides defensively, as well.
"I have to give credit to Americas because they were putting the ball in play," Jackson said. "Heather's strikeouts were actually down a little bit. But she got a lot of pop-ups and we made all of the plays.
"I think that will really benefit us this week. Defense is something that we're really working on this week. The last week or two, we've done a lot of hitting, but this week we're getting back to perfecting our defense. I know we've been playing well, but we're still a young team and there can be nerves. We don't have to make all of the great plays, we just have to make the plays."
Defense figures to be a key aspect against a strong hitting team like East.
Hebron is also hopeful Stearns can baffle the East bats after not facing the Panthers in their second regular season matchup (an 11-1 Lady Panthers' win). The Hawks actually led the game, 1-0, midway through. East also took the first meeting, 8-1.
"I thought Heather pitched pretty well in Game 1," Jackson said. "We just had one inning that really got away from us in both games. That can happen sometimes, we're just hoping that isn't the case this weekend."
Hebron and East have been at the forefront of a reign of destruction 8-5A has brought in the playoffs. East, Hebron, Plano and Flower Mound are a combined 18-1 against non-district opponents this postseason with the only teams eliminating 8-5A squads being other 8-5A squads.
"Not to discredit any of the other teams in the playoffs, but I felt confident our region would come down to teams from this district," said Karen Kalhoefer, East head coach. "It should be a fun game against Hebron. They have a very good team, so it's going to come down to taking advantage of the situations you are given and hitting the ball well."
The margin for error in the regional finals has been reduced as Hebron won the coin flip and opted for a one-game series, which will take place at 7:30 p.m. Friday at Allen.
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