The Tea Area Titans left Aberdeen with a state title in softball for the first time. They beat defending champs West Central 9-5 on Saturday in a rematch of last season's championship game.
“It means a lot. After last year, we put in a lot of work, and here we are,” said Tea Area head coach Emmie Uitts.
West Central led 5-0 through four innings thanks to RBIs from Kadence Lupkes, Izzy Parsons, Caitlyn Hoff, and Hanna Rathez. But that’s when the Titans roared back, scoring two runs in the fifth and one in the sixth, giving the Titans a two-run deficit heading into the seventh.
“Honestly, that is the best spot we could have been in because that took all the pressure off, and the girls were just there to have fun,” stated Uitts. “But they were also hungry and knew what they wanted to do. They just worked together like we did all year long and got it back one by one.”
The Titan’s bats then exploded in the 7th as they scored six runs to take a 9-5 lead. All of the runs were scored with Tea Area facing two outs.
“It’s crazy, but that is why there are seven innings, and that is why you play it all the way, and our team has always been good about never giving up,” exclaimed Uitts. “And working through every single pitch and every single play and every single inning that has been our saying all year long.” Exclaimed Uitts.
For the Titans, this was not only their first class ‘A’ state softball title, but also their last game in class ‘A’ softball.
“You know, we hoped so, especially because we will be moving to AA next year, so this is our last game in A ball. We just figured we might as well leave our mark on it and leave it better than we found it.” Said Uitts.
Senior Emily Froendt came into the game to pitch for Tea Area in the 4th inning. She would pitch three and one-third innings, gave up five hits, but didn’t allow a run. She also had three strikeouts in the win.