WALK-OFF VICTORY. In the bottom of the seventh inning, Dorie Richardson smashed a home run over the fences to beat the Rolla Lady Bulldogs, 6-5. Richardson tallied up 2 runs, 3 hits and drove in 3 RBIs for her clutch win. Photo by Wyatt Hardy.
Richardson’s Walk-Off Homer Beats Rolla, 6-5
Trailing 6-3 to Rolla, the pressure was mounting on the Lady Eagles in the bottom of the seventh inning. With Molly Lohden on second base and Ava Declue on first base, Dorie Richardson stood at the plate with two strikes, needing to seize this opportunity to win the game.
She took a deep breath and unleashed one of the most memorable swings of her career. The audience rose from their seats and Sullivan’s dugout fell into absolute silence.
Richardson paused her running route as she realized what she had accomplished. “All I know is that I knew it was over once I heard everyone cheering,” she remarked.
The Lady Eagles stormed onto the field to congratulate Richardson for the miracle she had delivered. After experiencing recent tough losses against challenging opponents, Sullivan felt that this moment was what they had been waiting for.
Richardson’s initial swings were too powerful, as she was eager to hit a home run. Assistant coach Heidi Blankenship was shouting at her from 1st base, urging her not to put too much force into it.
“I knew that I needed to relax. I was trying so hard to overdo it that I needed to remind myself that I needed to stay neutral,” Richardson explained.
Coming to her senses, Richardson signaled to head coach Ashley Crump that she was in the right mindset. She used a cooling-down technique she had been taught by Crump, focusing on the present moment rather than worrying about the end of the game or the possibility of losing.
Because of this, Richardson relaxed herself, focused on the pitch and delivered the final blow to the Rolla Bulldogs, sending the ball over the fence for a 6-5 Sullivan victory.
She credited her team for aiding her in the big win against Rolla, saying, “Even though I got the home run I couldn’t have made that happen if the people in front of me didn’t get on or if the whole team didn’t have my back and put [their] total confidence in me.”
In total, Richardson made 2 runs, 3 hits and drove in 3 RBIs.
Lohden had 2 hits and scored 2 runs.
Declue added a run, 2 hits and an RBI.
Venable collected 2 hits and an RBI.
Ortner and Morgan Braun each recorded a hit, while Rae Corwin had an RBI and Evvie Blankenship completed a hit.
Winning pitcher Blankenship tallied 9 strikeouts against the Lady Bulldogs while allowing 7 hits and 5 runs. a