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MILLCREEK — As Ridgeline softball coasted through the regular season and into 4A state championships, a simple motto guided the team: "Bring the storm."
The idea behind it was that utilizing speed on the base path and executing in small ball situations can impact the game. It has lifted the Riverhakws to a 27-3 record and the No. 1 seed in the tournament to help the Cache Valley-based school nab the state record for the most stolen bases in a single season.
In its most important game to date on Thursday afternoon at the Cottonwood Complex, the Riverhawks most certainly brought the storm and overwhelmed region rival Mountain Crest 13-0 in five innings to clinch a spot in the championship series against second-seeded Bear River.
Ridgeline, who broke the prior state record of 154 bases stolen in a season before the playoffs began, tallied 10 stolen bases and scored five of its first six runs on passed balls against the Mustangs. Ava Howel tacked on a two-run home run, Addy Hess pitched five shutout innings, and the school from Millville had three straight playoff wins.
"We feel like that speed and defense travel," Ridgeline coach Micheal Anderson said. "We are very cognizant, we've pushed the kids to run. Every day in practice there's a section of that that goes on running."
The often contentious Ridgeline-Mountain Crest matchup had the chance to be magnified due to the stakes. After eighth-seeded Mountain Crest fell to Ridgeline in the first round of the double elimination bracket on Wednesday morning, it strung together upset victories over fifth-seeded Crimson Cliffs on Wednesday evening, and another against fourth-seeded Snow Canyon on Thursday morning to reach the final four.
On an emotional high after its 6-4 win over the Warriors just moments prior, the Mustangs had no answers against the Riverhawks. Mountain Crest mustered just four hits and five strikeouts. After holding the Riverhawks to just one run in the first two innings, Ridgeline's aggression won out, as the top-ranked team scored nine runs in the third inning.
"Whenever you play a rivalry game, there's always an opportunity for those guys to gain momentum on you. And I think anybody can immediately be on a given day," Anderson said. "They were amped for us; they had a big win against Snow Canyon to begin with, so I love the resiliency of our girls, and it started with Hess. She just kept throwing strikes, kept the ball in the zone, and that's where I think it kept the pressure on and, eventually, that one inning busted open."
Bear River handles Cedar
On the opposite end of the complex, second-seeded Bear River had its way against seventh-seeded Cedar in a 10-1 win on Thursday afternoon to reach the final. Bears ace Kate Dahle threw 10 strikeouts in the win, Aubree Fry had three hits, and Bella Douglas batted in three RBIs.
"(Dahle) pitched great tonight," Bear River coach Calvin Bingham said. "She has a tendency once in a while to get two or three walks. And I tell her that it's going to come back and haunt her. Today she never walked anybody until the seventh inning."
Region 11 Title Bout
The best-of-three series for the 4A title will be blue blood versus new blood. Bear River has won 10 state championships in the past 21 years, while Ridgeline has won once — when they defeated the Bears last season. In the regular season, the Riverhakws won both games, 10-9 and 5-2.
"I expect it to be a real close game — a battle," Bingham said. "They've got some really good players, but I think if you can keep their top three off the base pass it helps your chances a lot."
Hosted at the Cottonwood Complex, Game 1 begins Friday at 12 p.m. MDT, and Game 2 takes place on Saturday at 5 p.m. MDT, with a third game to directly follow, if necessary.
"Calvin's done this a lot of years," Anderson said. "He's won 10 championships in 21 years, so that, to me, is the standard, and we're still a long ways to go to catch them as a standard. We have great respect for who they are because we've done a lot to try to model what we do after their style, and so having them in our region makes us better and so we're grateful for that. It's a rivalry game, so we're gonna try to bring our best; I'm sure they will, too."
