Every possible scenario that could have hindered Hayfield’s National District First Round playoff game against Falls Church took place Wednesday.
As a prelude of what was to come, the centerfield lights blew up in the second inning and then Mother Nature got a hit of her own with a 30 minute lightning delay in the top of the fourth inning.
The off the field theatricals didn’t affect the Hawks’ play and after a short resumption of play, the game was finally called final in the top of the fifth inning with Hayfield leading 7-0.
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“This whole season has been awful,” Hayfield head coach Ron Giovannucci said of the weather distractions.
Due to standing water on the field for most of the week, the team has had to practice indoors and because of the Senior Prom being scheduled for Friday, it was imperative that the game against Falls Church be played out as long as possible and set a postponement for the semifinal game.
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The Hawks (20-1-1, 14-0 National), which beat Falls Church 29-0 in their first game of the season didn’t have any problems early against the Jaguars (1-15, 1-13 National).
Hayfield junior pitcher Amber Fowler pitched the first three innings and had five strikeouts while allowing no hits. Fowler was later replaced by junior sophomore Taylor Neuhart who notched three strikeouts before the game was called.
“We’ve been doing that all year,” Giovannucci said. “Taylor’s a very good pitcher and we made an agreement at the beginning of the year that Taylor would be the closer and Amber would be the starter and pitch 60-percent of the time.”
Hayfield scored three runs in both the first and second inning to get off to a quick 6-0 lead.
Freshman Brittany Creamer, sophomore Taylor Neuhart and sophomore Taryn McElhenny all drove in runs in the first inning.
The Hawks’ success at the plate continued in the second inning with junior Brittany Hayman notching an RBI that was followed up by a Jessica Reynolds double. Senior Megan Perry Shifflett also brought home a run.
Hayfield’s last run of the game was a result of a Falls Church error, when Amber Fowler lifted a pop fly in centerfield that was dropped to eventually score a run.
As the top seed in the district, Hayfield will host Mount Vernon on Thursday at 6 p.m. The Majors defeated Edison on Tuesday to advance to the semifinals. The winner will play in the championship game on Monday, May 23.
The Hawks have had previous success this season against the Majors and defeated Mount Vernon 17-7 and 11-1 earlier in the regular season.
