Ralston Valley senior Malory Eldredge belted a pair of home runs Wednesday in a 14-12 victory over Columbine. (Dennis Pleuss/Jeffco Athletics)
LITTLETON — When conference softball play began in the Class 5A Jeffco League the defending league championships looked venerable.
Ralston Valley held a 3-7 record heading into the Mustangs’ conference opener Sept. 20 against rival Arvada West, ranked No. 2 in the latest CHSAANow.com 5A softball poll. Ralston Valley cruised to a 10-2 victory over A-West to begin an eight-game winning streak that concluded Wednesday afternoon with a wild 14-12 road victory in extra innings over Columbine.
“We really came into this game wanting to complete our league as undefeated champs,” Ralston Valley senior Malory Eldredge said after the regular-season finale. “There were so many emotions about finishing our senior year with this win.”
The Mustangs (11-7, 7-0 in league) had already clinched back-to-back conference titles with a dominating 15-5 victory against Dakota Ridge last Saturday, but completing a second straight undefeated conference run was important.
Ralston Valley junior Gianna Browdy delivers to the plate Wednesday against Columbine. (Dennis Pleuss/Jeffco Athletics)
“It’s really huge to me. To do it my senior year is pretty awesome,” Ralston Valley senior catcher Alexa Samuels said. “We started rough and really came together as a team. I’m excited to see what the postseason is like.”
Eldredge and Samuels provided the power to finally put an end to the Rebels’ upset bid. Columbine (9-10, 3-4) scored three runs in the bottom of the seventh inning to tie things up 12-12. Eldredge and Samuels responded by crushing solo home runs over the fence at Dave Sanders Memorial Field to give the Mustangs a 14-12 lead.
“I’ve played against (Columbine senior pitcher Jenni Romero) my whole life,” said Eldredge, who finished the game with two home runs and two doubles while driving in five runs. “She (Romero) is a great pitcher, but I knew I had to go up there finish it for my pitcher (Ralston Valley junior Gianna Browdy). She was working hard. I had to do it for her.”
Samuels, who knocked in three runs, belted her solo home run with two outs in the top of the eighth to give Browdy a bit of a cushion. Browdy was able to retire the Rebels in order in the bottom of the eighth inning to end the game.
“Knowing how they practice and prepare, I have confidence in them,” Ralston Valley coach Wendy Davies said.
Ralston Valley was all smiles during its 9-run top of the first inning against Columbine. (Dennis Pleuss/Jeffco Athletics)
Ralston Valley saw its 9-0 lead after the top of the first inning completely evaporate with a gutsy effort by the Rebels. A 2-run home run by Columbine senior Kasey Cruz cut the Mustangs’ lead to 9-5 after three innings.
Senior Shania Lopez and junior Zoey Cruz both had 2-run doubles in the bottom of the fifth inning to trim the lead to 12-9. Lopez scored on a wild pitch with two outs in the bottom of the seventh inning to tie the game at 12-12.
“Giving up nine unearned runs in that first inning after a couple of errors was tough,” Columbine coach Brooks Roybal said. “They very well could have tucked their heads and called it a day, but they battled back. They have refused to back down.”
The Rebels did have a little history on their side heading into the league finale. Ralston Valley’s last league loss came to the hands of Columbine back on Oct. 2, 2014.
Now it’s a wait-and-see game. The 32-team field for the regional tournaments are scheduled to be released next Monday. Regionals will be played Oct. 15. All state tournaments (5A, 4A and 3A) are scheduled for Oct. 21 and 22 at Aurora Sports Park.
“It’s a strange situation because if you won your league in the past you knew you would host (regionals),” Davies said. “It’s a long wait. Hopefully we can stay focused and do some fun things with them.”
Columbine should make the postseason. The Rebels were No. 20 in the RPI rankings before the regular-season finale. The new RPI rankings will decide the 18 at-large bids to the 5A regional field after the 14 automatic bids are handed out in the new format.
The 5A Jeffco League receives two automatic bids with Ralston Valley and the winner of Arvada West at Dakota Ridge (4 p.m. Friday) likely earning the other automatic bid.
Ralston Valley hopes it can keep its momentum going in the playoffs. Davies credits the hard work her players have put in since starting the season 3-7 for the dramatic turnaround.
Columbine senior Kasey Cruz, left, is greeted at the plate by teammates after her 2-run home run Wednesday against Ralston Valley. (Dennis Pleuss/Jeffco Athletics)