You know what they say about the playoffs in any sport: Throw the regular-season results out the window, because this is a completely different ballgame.
This was certainly true of last week’s softball district championship tournament at Durant, and even though the top-seeded Plant City Lady Raiders won it all, there were a few surprises that popped up over the course of the week.
Durant did have a down year in 2015 and entered the tournament on an eight-game losing streak. But they weren’t a team to count out early. Beyond the fact that they were the defending champs, many of these girls played in the last tournament, and several were impact players. These girls do know how to win playoff games.
Their 10-0 opening-round win over Tampa Bay Tech no doubt gave the girls some much-needed confidence, and the Lady Cougars did give it their all in a late rally against Plant City. It wasn’t enough to top the Lady Raiders’ early scoring burst, though.
I don’t think Cougar fans should fear for the future of this team, as it has just two seniors on the verge of graduation. Next year’s team will be senior-heavy, but experienced, and there’s no doubt that these girls will have learned from this season’s mistakes.
Strawberry Crest was kind of the anti-Durant in this tournament, in that it entered with an eight-game win streak and lost to East Bay, 7-4, in the first round. It wasn’t the team’s first loss to the Lady Indians this season, but the last game did see Crest pitch a 5-0 shutout win at home.
The second half of Crest’s season was wildly successful, losing only once since Feb. 24, and the Lady Chargers looked poised to make noise in the tourney. But the team couldn’t capitalize on East Bay’s mistakes — the district runners-up committed three errors to Crest’s one — and couldn’t overcome six East Bay runs in the first two innings.
I was a little shocked to see Crest make an early exit, but as I mentioned earlier, things can go off the script pretty easily in the playoffs.
Congratulations are in order for Plant City, which took home the district title for the first time since beating Durant in 2011.
The girls’ attitudes did a complete 180-degree turn after the first inning of the championship game, turning into some stone cold, softball-killing machines and taking away any chances the Lady Indians thought they could have. If you’re facing a deficit and need to mount a comeback like, now, that’s exactly how you do it.
The new champs played at Wiregrass Ranch in the first game of regionals Wednesday, April 22. The winner’s results were not available at press time. The winner will advance to play either East Bay or Steinbrenner Tuesday, April 28.
UPDATE: Plant City defeated Wiregrass Ranch, 6-4, and will face Steinbrenner in the regional semifinal game.
Contact Justin Kline at jkline@plantcityobserver.com.
