SURVIVE & ADVANCE: Gladstone Girls Win, 9-7

FISHERS, Ind.---The Gladstone Major Little League (age 11-12) All-Stars advanced to the Central Regional quarterfinals on Wednesday with a 9-7 win over Columbia, Mo., in an error-filled softball game in suburban Indianapolis.

“This is what you call grinding out a win,” Gladstone Manager Rick Pepin said. “I’m happy for the girls to get this win under their belts, so we can move forward to tomorrow in bracket play. It’s a great feeling. That’s all we wanted to do was find a way to sneak into bracket play. Now you have a chance.”

Gladstone scored a run in the first inning when Lauren Sundquist was safe on an error and scored on a wild pitch.

It could have been a bigger inning but Maggie Buckley was robbed of extra bases when Missouri center fielder Ava Bush raced into the right-center field gap to make the catch.

Gladstone then committed three errors in the bottom of the first inning, and Bush took advantage with an RBI single to put her team in front. Ella Grant had an RBI single as well to make it a 3-1 Missouri lead.

The Gladstone girls responded in the second inning with three runs of their own. Reese Herioux walked and Morgan Dawley followed with a base hit. With one out, Addie Trombley smacked a two-run single to right field to tie the game.

“The first hit I had, I felt really good about it, and I felt that it would get the team going,” Trombley said.

It did.

Sundquist used her speed to beat out an infield hit, then Buckley smacked an RBI single to right field, making it a 4-3 Gladstone lead.

Gladstone added three runs in the third inning, helped along by two Missouri errors. Addie Tryan came off the bench for an infield hit on a swinging bunt to bring home a run, with another scoring on a bad throw.

“I was a little bit nervous and I thought I wasn’t going to make it at first,” Tryan said. “Until I didn’t see the ball at first base!”

Tia Schone followed with a nice bunt to bring Tryan home, and she somehow avoided the tag . Sundquist got her second straight hit, but a ground out ended the inning with a 7-3 lead.

Montgomery Pepin was able to pitch a 1-2-3 inning in the third inning to keep that four-run lead, but in the fourth inning, poor defense again cost Gladstone.

Two errors and a wild pitch allowed two runs to score, then Nina Luecke ripped an RBI double and Addie Morris followed with an RBI single.

All of a sudden, it was a 7-7 tie heading into the fifth inning.

Gladstone had two outs and nobody on base when Trombley beat out an infield hit. Sundquist followed with her third hit of the game, and the throw back in from center field was bad, allowing the go-ahead run to score. Pepin retired the side 1-2-3 in the bottom of the fifth, with Rylee Gerow making a nice catch in right field.

In the sixth inning, Gladstone scored an insurance run when Pepin was safe on an error, stole both second and third base, and scored on a ground ball by Gerow.

Pepin threw all six innings, using 120 pitches to allow seven runs (four earned) on six base hits. She walked three and struck out four.

Makenna Ramsey took the loss in relief, allowing five runs (one earned) on five hits and two walks in four innings. She struck out two.

Starter Addie Morris tossed two innings.

The Gladstone girls were able to get some fun in the Indiana sun after the early-afternoon game ended.

“I think it’s a really, really cool experience that everyone will want to remember,” Tryan said. “I really like seeing all of the new people from different places.”

“It’s important for them to spend some time with their parents, some family time, away from the softball field,” Rick Pepin said.

Regardless of the shaky play so far in the tournament, Gladstone is now in the quarterfinal round, and three wins away from the Little League World Series.

“I think we’re ready, and if we get rid of the errors, we’ll do a lot better than we have the last two games,” Trombley said.

Gladstone will be seeded sixth in the quarterfinals on Thursday and will face third seeded Marion County, Kentucky. Game time is 4:06 p.m. and it will be broadcast on NewsTalk 600 and rrnsports.com right after the 3:30 news.

WEDNESDAY’S OTHER GAMES
Flyods Knobs, Indiana 6, Pike County, Illinois 1
Marion County, Kentucky 2, Omaha, Nebraska 1

THURSDAY’S QUARTERFINAL SCHEDULE
(1) Floyds Knobs, Indiana vs (8) Omaha, Nebraska, 10 a.m.
(5) Tallmadge, Ohio vs (4) Pike County, Illinois, 1 p.m.
(6) GLADSTONE vs (3) Marion County, Kentucky, 4 p.m.
(2) Polk City, Iowa vs (7) Columbia, Missouri, 7 p.m.

Click the thumbnails in the ARTICLE HIGHLIGHTS box above to see photos and videos taken by Amy Sundquist. Also, click the AUDIO buttons to hear interviews with Tryan, Trombley, and Rick Pepin.