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Williamsburg fulfills its championship destiny at state softball tournament
Raiders score four early runs, then Peyton Driscoll dances around danger late in a 4-0 win over Davenport Assumption in the Class 3A final
Jul. 21, 2023 5:59 pm, Updated: Jul. 24, 2023 9:40 am
FORT DODGE — Peyton Driscoll was dancing with danger.
And Jenna Thurm, as per usual, knew what to say.
“It’s all jokes,” Thurm said. “It’s always a joke. I told her that I wasn’t going to take my (championship) T-shirt off for three days, except to eat.”
Top-ranked Williamsburg scored four early runs, Driscoll and her defense made them stick, and the Raiders topped No. 2 Davenport Assumption, 4-0, in the Class 3A state softball final Friday afternoon at the Rogers Sports Complex.
“Words can’t describe it,” Shannon Finn said. “We’ve come so close, so many times.
“This is for so much more than us. It’s for our families. It’s for our community. It’s for Tate Schaefer.”
It’s for Williamsburg.
The Raiders had knocked on the door before, finishing second, third and third in their previous three appearances. This time, they kicked it in.
“I wanted that pink shirt so bad,” Driscoll said. “We’ll always be known as the team that won it, and nobody will forget us.”
Williamsburg (36-9) outscored its three state opponents by a 23-1 margin. And as was the case in the first two rounds, the Raiders struck early.
The common denominator in both two-run rallies (one in the first inning, once in the third) was eighth-grade pinch-runner Ava Hocker.
“She’s fantastic,” Elle Ridgeway said. “She’ll be one of the best to come through here. And wait until you see her in track.”
Finn led off the bottom of the first with a walk, then stole second. She scored on Thurm’s single, and Hocker courtesy-ran for Thurm, who stood at second base.
Hocker scored from second on Alley Gorsh’s infield single for a 2-0 lead.
In the third, Carly Rich walked with one out and scored on Ridgeway’s double to right field.,
Hocker pinch-ran for Ridgeway and scored from second on a 1-3 groundout by Thurm to make it 4-0.
Assumption (34-7), which was making its seventh 3A finals appearance in the last eight years, put pressure on Driscoll (20-3) and the Raiders in each of the last four innings, getting eight batters on base and six runners into scoring position.
But each time, the Raiders held firm. Driscoll struck out only one batter, but her teammates made plays when they needed to.
“They were tremendous. I couldn’t have done it without them,” Driscoll said. “I knew they had my back. Once we scored first, I thought, ‘We’ve got this.’
“Assumption has good hitters. They’re tough. I told myself to play loose and have fun.”
And when needed, Thurm came out for a reminder.
Thurm was selected as the all-tournament captain. Driscoll, Finn and Rich joined her on the select team.
Since the preseason, this just felt like the Raiders’ year. And Friday, they fulfilled their destiny.
“Once we got to the postseason, I said, ‘We’re getting those pink shirts,’” Driscoll said.
Williamsburg 4, Davenport Assumption 0
Class 3A State Championship, at Fort Dodge
Davenport Assumption 000 000 0 — 0 5 0
Williamsburg 202 000 x — 4 5 2
Leah Maro and Charlotte Wigey. Peyton Driscoll and Jenna Thurm. W — Driscoll (20-3). L — Maro (20-4).
Comments: jeff.linder@thegazette.com
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