THS smashes; DeMichael flashes in Regional Semifinal victory
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TAYLORVILLE — (Left) Reece Brockelsby watches her RBI double fly as she prepares to round first base. The Tornado LF finished her night going 2-3 with two RBIs and two runs.
Lucas Domonousky
Breeze-Courier Sports Editor
TAYLORVILLE — Offense, defense and pitching all came alive for the Tornadoes as they hosted Decatur MacAurther on Tuesday afternoon May 23. Taylorville rattled the General’s pitching while freshman Peyton DeMicheal held things down on the mound to come away with an 11-1 Regional Semifinal victory.
The THS bats arose to the top scoring ten runs in the third and fourth innings. As a team the Tornadoes had 23 at-bats, nine hits, nine runs batted in which in turn scored them 11 runs while only striking out twice.
“Our bats really came around and woke up.” Head Coach Chris Durham stated. “To see the ball go through the air when we hit it, it gives the team a little more confidence to move forward against this next team. It was like a switch went off and they started seeing the ball a lot better. These girls have worked their tails off to get to this spot right here right now.”
The heart of the lineup played out of their minds throughout the match. Jessi Wright was impressive going 2-3 with two runs and two RBIs while Reece Brockelsby hit 2-3 with two runs and two RBIs of her own. Kyleigh Heimsness went 1-2 with three RBIs and a run scored. Anna Harden went 1-2 with a hit, base on balls and drove in one.
TAYLORVILLE — Peyton DeMichael winds up her arm and hurls the ball towards the plate. She posted five innings of one-run ball allowing just three hits and seven Ks.
Lucas Domonousky Breeze-Courier Photo
Another player who has been waiting for this opportunity all season long was freshman pitcher Peyton DeMichael who really brought her stuff for the first round of Regionals. She pitched a complete five-inning game allowing just one run on three hits, two walks and seven strikeouts.
“Pitching was fantastic.” Coach Durham says after the win. “Peyton did a great job to come in for her first Regional game and threw lights out. She did a great job. Decatur was on it but our pitching and defense really really stepped up.”
Having home field advantage for the first round of the postseason played a factor in how much fun the Tornadoes were able to have.
“This is a blessing.” Durham mentions. “Having these fans out here scream and holler for these kids was exactly what they needed. We still have a great fan base that follows us on the road but they love to be here to have their family and friends rooting them on. I saw
a lot of the younger kids in the crowd which I was happy for but I love seeing the parents out here hootin’ and hollering for them.”
Their next opponent, Chatham Glenwood, is not going to be a walk in the park by any means. They defeated their Regional Semifinal opponent, Springfield Southeast,16-0. They currently have a 27-1-1 record this season.
“They’re tough.” Coach Durham says. “But If we can hit like this, play defense like we just did we’re going to give them everything they can handle.”
Taylorville (7-24) will host the Titans on Friday, May 26 for the Regional Finals. First pitch will be thrown out at 4:30p.m.