Three-sport fab freshman Taylor Passard clinched her first Gatorade award on Friday. Photo by Bruce Eggleston/MatSu Sports
Just a freshman, Taylor Passard is just too good to ignore.
The Colony softball superstar on Friday became the first freshman to win Gatorade Alaska Player of the Year. The day before, the shortstop belted two homers and led the Knights to two wins at the ASAA Division I state tournament in Fairbanks.
On Thursday, Passard helped the Knights go 1-1 in pool play before beating Service 17-9 in the quarterfinals during which she went yard and matched her season high with six RBIs.
In three games on the day, she went 8-for-12 with two home runs, a triple, double and 11 RBIs. And that’s why she’s considered the best player in the state.
Prep Softball
ASAA/First National Bank Alaska
Division I State Tournament
At South Davis Fields, Fairbanks
Thursday Quarterfinals
South 13, Juneau 5
Sitka 3, Wasilla 2
Colony 17, Service 9
Chugiak 17, Bartlett 0
⚾
Friday
Winner’s Bracket
11:30am South vs. Sitka
11:30am Colony vs. Chugiak
4:30pm Sou/Sit winner vs. Col/Chu winner
Loser’s Bracket
9:00am Juneau vs. Wasilla
9:00am Service vs. Bartlett
2:00pm Jun/Was winner vs. TBD
2:00pm Ser/Bar winner vs. TBD
“Passard is truly a freak athlete,” Dimond head coach Josh Ogee told the selection committee.
Passard is batting .670 in 31 games on 59-for-103 hitting. She leads the state with 16 homers and 70 RBIs to go with 13 doubles and three grand slams.
Against Service, she went 2-for-4 with a two-run bomb, two-run double and RBI groundout. Even her outs are productive.
In a 9-4 loss to South Anchorage, she went 4-for-4 with a solo dinger.
In the tournament opener, Colony beat Bartlett 14-2 as Passard went 2-for-4 – with both hits coming in a nine-run third-inning rally, including a three-run triple.
Passard has hit safely in 32 of 33 games this year.
“She’s a natural athlete, a five-tool player who can hit for power, lay down a bunt and hit for average,” Ogee said. “Defensively, she’s done everything for them.”
Colony 17, Service 9
Alli Morrissey went 4-for-5 with a double and three RBIs and relief pitcher Betty Schmidt two scoreless innings in Thursday’s quarterfinals.
Colony’s Lillyan Ditlz homered and had two RBIs, and Meghan Schoon went 2-for-4 and knocked in two runs.
Service’s Maliana Tavai went 2-for-3 with a triple, double and four RBIs, while McKinley Fuller went 3-for-4 with a home run and double.
Service 234 00 – 9 9 1
Colony 550 61 – 17 17 2
Service – Hicks, Fuller (4) and Williams. Colony – Minnick, Schmidt (4) and Bell. 2B – Service: Tavai, Fuller. Colony: Morrissey, Gallagher, Passard. 3B – Service: Tavai. HR – Service: Fuller. Colony: Diltz, Passard.
Chugiak 17, Bartlett 0
Shelby Strange and Torri Jolin each had four RBIs and the Mustangs banged out nine extra-base hits to win Thursday’s quarterfinal game.
This was Chugiak’s 14th straight victory.
Jolin went 3-for-4 and pitched all three innings, while Strange was 2-for-3 with two triples.
Isabel Sjostrand launched her 11th homer and nine-hole hitter Rachel Woods went 3-for-3 with a pair of doubles and two RBIs.
Bartlett 000 – 0 3 2
Chugiak 14(12) – 17 16 1
Bartlett – Loia and Faaaliga. Chugiak – Joilin and McCormick. 2B – Chugiak: Wood 2, Lanehart, McCormick, Sjostrand, Jolin. 3B – Chugiak: Strange 2. HR – Chugiak: Sjostrand.
South 13, Juneau 5
Molly Stone struck out eight batters in five innings on the mound and rapped out two hits and a double at the plate to lead the Wolverines in Thursday’s quarterfinal victory.
Nine-hole hitter Emma Counts cranked out two doubles and added two RBIs and two runs scored, while Adriana Jones was 3-for-4 with three RBIs.
Juneau’s June Troxel and Blythe Lockhart each had RBI doubles.
Juneau 001 31 – 5 2 2
South 922 0x – 13 13 6
Juneau – Wheeler, Nizich (2) and Chenoweth, Lockhart, Hayes. South – Stone and Boin. 2B – Juneau: Lockhart, Troxel. South: Counts 2, Jones, Stone. 3B – None. HR – None.
Sitka 3, Wasilla 2
Payton Bergman tripled and scored on a passed ball in the bottom of the seven inning to lift the Wolves to a walk-off victory in Thursday’s quarterfinals.
The eight-hole hitter had a day, going 3-for-3 and coming up clutch when it mattered most. She led off the seventh with a triple and came home during Ally Mayville’s at-bat.
In the fifth, Mayville’s bunt single scored Bristol Clifton to tie the game 2-2.
Sitka pitcher Alina Lebahn went the distance, scattering six hits and walking none.
Wasilla ace Adaya Lash struck out nine batters in 6.1 innings, while Selah Sundberg and Sydney Shaw each had doubles.
Wasilla 000 110 0 – 2 6 3
Sitka 000 020 1 – 3 8 0
Wasilla – Lash and Ferguson. Sitka – Lebahn and McCarty. 2B – Wasilla: Sundberg, Shaw. 3B – Sitka: Bergman. HR – None.
