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Pompano Beach falls 2-1 to Heritage in Class 4A regional final
Pompano Beach sophomore pitcher Sammy Murphy allowed only two hits and struck out 12 in a 2-1 loss to American Heritage in a Class r4A regional final on Friday.
By Dave Brousseau
BCAA Writer
PLANTATION – If anything was proven during Friday’s 2-1 loss to American Heritage in a Class 4A regional final, the Pompano Beach softball team can no longer be considered a pushover. The Golden Tornadoes hung in there with one of the state’s elite teams behind the pitching of sophomore Sammy Murphy. She didn’t allow a hit through the first four innings while allowing one walk and striking out nine. She finished the night giving up only singles and 12 K’s.
Down 2-0 entering the top of the seventh inning, the Tornadoes had a final opportunity to tie or win the game. With two outs Pompano loaded the bases, pinched hitter Riley Dion walked allowing Gabby Drew to score that cut the lead to 2-1. Lauren Westerfield, however, lined out to second to end the threat. It was the fifth time Pompano (16-6) lined out for an apparent hit.
“We hit the ball hard and well, but Heritage just made the plays,” said Pompano Beach coach John McGuire. “We played with them but sometimes the ball falls different ways for you and that happened tonight. This was a good test for us, and we proved ourselves for the non-believers.”
In the 10 seasons prior to Friday’s game, the Tornadoes had lost 12 consecutive games to the Patriots and had been outscored 107-0. The run also snapped a stretch of 77 straight innings without scoring. Entering the bottom of the sixth inning and the score tied at 0-0, the Patriots took advantage of a pair of misguided pitches from Murphy.
With no outs and the bases loaded, there was no room for error. Heritage took a 1-0 lead as sophomore Hailey Diaz scored from third on a wild pitch. Murphy appeared to be in position to avoid further trouble after recording two outs on a pair of strikeouts. However, Sidney Miller was hit by a pitch and Brooke Fields scored from third a 2-0 lead.
“I got a little rattled in the inning,” said Murphy. “I got a pair of strikeouts and was happy with no further damage and honestly my hand was really getting sweaty too. We are really looking forward to next year. We are going to come out stronger than ever. We know what we can do now and look to up our game.”
Pompano did win its first softball district title in school history as well as reaching a regional final for the first time.