Colony star shortstop Taylor Passard. Photo by Bruce Eggleston/MatSu Sports
The legend of Taylor Passard began before she ever played a game for the Colony softball team as a Team USA tryout invitee.
It grew this season and reached a new level Friday in the Railbelt Conference Tournament title game after she hit a tying home run in the seventh inning to propel the Knights to a 3-2 win over Wasilla in extra innings.
After Passard’s two-run shot squared the game at deuces, eight-hole hitter Joslyn Starkey knocked in Emma Minnick with the winning run as the Knights walked it off in the eighth inning.
Colony starter Alli Morrissey outdueled Wasilla ace Adaya Lash to earn the winning decision on a day when both pitchers combined to strike out 29 batters. Morrissey threw a 2-hitter with 16 Ks, while Lash fanned 13 and carried a no-hitter into the seventh inning.
Lash retired the first 11 batters in order before hitting Passard with two outs in the fourth. After that, she sat down the next seven batters going into the seventh.
Colony came into the game riding a 21-game winning streak, but Lash carved up the Knights for six frames as she faced one over the minimum and struck out 12 of the first 19 batters she faced.
But everything changed after two pitches. First, Morgan Gallagher broke up the no-no with a single and then Passard launched a two-run nuke to center field to tie the game 2-2.
It was her 14th homer of the season and sixth in the last eight games. Passard is batting .671 with 59 RBIs.
Wasilla ace Adaya Lash. Photo by Bruce Eggleston/MatSu Sports
Colony pitcher Alli Morrissey. Photo by Bruce Eggleston/MatSu Sports
Before Passard’s big fly tied the game, Wasilla had led since the top of the first inning. The Warriors put three of the first four batters on base before Maylee Metcalf scored on a passed ball and Selah Sundberg scored on a wild pitch, making it 2-0 before Lash threw her first pitch.
Morrissey was marvelous after the first inning. She struck out the side in each of the second and fifth innings, and worked around a leadoff double by Lash in the sixth and the leadoff batter reaching on an error in the eighth.
In the bottom of the eighth, Minnick was placed on second base and Starkey’s bunt single turned into a game-winning RBI.
Chugiak claims CIC pennant
Led by a smoking-hot offense and the pitching of Torri Jolin, the Chugiak Mustangs turned the CIC Tournament into a stampede.
Chugiak (13-1) cruised to playoff victories over Dimond, South Anchorage and Bartlett by a combined score of 41-7 en route to winning the championship.
The Mustangs batted .541 in three tournament games on 40-for-74 hitting, capped by a 15-0 win over the Golden Bears in the title game on Saturday.
Chugiak punched its ticket to the ASAA Division I state tournament as No. 1 seed out of the Cook Inlet Conference. Photo courtesy CHS Softball
Jolin started two games and came on in relief in another, posting a 3-0 record and 1.40 ERA. She pitched to contract and trusted her defense, a strategy that worked to perfection.
Star shortstop Isabel Sjostrand belted two home runs over the weekend and left fielder Samantha McCulloch hit one out.
In the title game, Sjostrand went 3-for-3 with a homer and four RBIs. Chugiak had six extra-base hits, including triples by Abi Lanehart and Aubree Sims.
Chugiak will carry an 11-game winning streak into next week’s state tournament at South Davis Fields in Fairbanks.
