Fairfield junior pitcher Megan Spence and senior catcher Karley Clark started the dogpile seconds after the Indians secured a 1-0 win over Centerville to win their first regional title in 33 years.
Their fellow fourth years, Jillian Huey, Leanna Lawson, Abby Leugers, Izzy Saylor and Abby Stanfield, joined them in accepting the regional championship trophy moments later.
Spence put on her best display of the season, tossing her sixth complete-game shutout while striking out four batters and scattering three hits.
"To be honest, my arm feels really good, and I've just been preparing all week for this game," Spence said.
Clark soldiered through the final two innings after turning her ankle running to first base. She said her fair share of prayers as she got her ankle taped in time to get behind the plate for the sixth inning.
Her reaction to the final pitch?
"Hallelujah, thank you, Lord!"
How did Fairfield softball score against Centerville?
The Indians are developing a pattern in the postseason. They used a five-run comeback to beat Ross, then beat Kings in a low-scoring, one-run game. Two days ago, they scored six unanswered runs to beat Lakota East before winning a low-scoring, one-run regional championship.
The one thing they all have in common is the offense slowly chipping away at the opposing pitcher. Against Centerville's Hayley Arnold, Ava Hensley and Madi Miller reached base in the first inning. Neither one scored, but it gave them confidence they could disrupt Arnold's dominance.
Fast forward to the third inning. Adelyn Huey roped a leadoff double to center. Jillian Huey followed with a walk before a wild pitch advanced them to second and third. Hensley reached base when Arnold gambled and tried to pick Adelyn off third on a ground ball.
With the bases loaded and a two-ball, one-strike count, Stanfield lifted a fly ball to center to score Adelyn Huey for the game's lone run.
That run did more than just give Fairfield the win. It ensured that Cincinnati will be represented at the DI state tournament for the 24th consecutive year. The last year a local team didn't make it was 1998.
How did Fairfield limit Centerville's powerful bats?
Much has been made of Fairfield's defense, especially in the postseason, but their fielding skills were at a premium on Friday afternoon.
After Centerville scored eight two-out runs against Mason on Wednesday, Spence & Co. held the Elks to 0-for-7 with runners in scoring position.
"That's why we do a lot of things in practice with pressure. We do 21 outs and we put our extra kids out there who are so great and work so hard for us, too," Fairfield head coach Brenda Stieger said.
Lawson and Hensley made catches deep in the outfield. Abby Stanfield made crucial stops at third, preventing Centerville's Ardyn Hopf from advancing from second to third on ground balls. Clark, even after her ankle injury, threw Hopf out attempting to steal second. Two days after securing the win over Lakota East, Huey knocked down a sharp grounder in the fifth inning to strand runners at second and third.
But the Indians made those plays because of the pitches Spence threw.
"Megan's amazing. I've had the privilege of catching Megan since she was 7 or 8 years old and I was 9 or 10, so being able to watch her progression through these past couple years has been a blessing, crazy, amazing, all the feels," Clark said.
Who does Fairfield softball play in the 2024 OHSAA Final Four?
The Indians will take on defending DI state champions Austintown-Fitch at 3 p.m. on Friday, May 31, at Firestone Stadium in Akron. The Falcons are 21-1 after an 8-2 regional championship win over Walsh Jesuit.
"Just getting so close so many times over the years that I've been the head coach here and wondering if it was ever going to happen before I hung up these coaching shoes. But just thrilled, excited, so happy for the program, so happy for these kids who worked so hard this year," Stieger said.
"I still can't believe it. We're going to the Final Four. Like, no way!" Spence added.
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