Shelbie Krieger's birthday and the birth of a rivalry
ROOTSTOWN — Shelbie Krieger turned 16 Monday.
The Rovers sophomore celebrated by striking out 22 batters and throwing 162 pitches in a 3-2 extra-inning victory over Mogadore that greatly enhanced her team's chances at a second straight league title.
(Mogadore and Rootstown, which now have one league loss apiece, tied for last year’s Portage Trail Conference championship, along with Garfield.)
Krieger’s performance Monday was remarkable.
Right around pitch 108, Krieger appeared to tire as she tossed four straight balls, highly uncharacteristic of the sophomore ace, but after Wildcats freshman shortstop Lily Hotchkiss broke up Krieger’s shutout bid with a two-RBI single in the top of the seventh, Krieger buckled down for an inning-ending strikeout.
"She definitely dug deep," Rovers coach Paige Byers said. "She is a competitor all the way through and she's going to do anything from that mound to help our team win."
After Rootstown second baseman Jessica Hahn forced extra innings with a game-tying solo homer to lead off the bottom of the seventh, a fired-up Krieger added two scoreless innings, including a 1-2-3 top of the ninth.
"After that big hit by Jessica, it really pumped me up, got me going," Krieger said. "I knew that my teammates are fighting for me, so I have to fight for them."
While Krieger’s teammates serenaded her with “Happy Birthday” in the third-base dugout after an error allowed the game-winning run to score in the bottom of the ninth, both coaches paid homage to the birth of a rivalry.
On a softball diamond roughly 100 yards from Robert C. Dunn Field, where Mogadore’s Logan Penix and Paul Skye and Rootstown’s Caleb Kaut and Nathan Moore waged war in a superb football rivalry just a few years ago, another rivalry was crystallized.
Twice, the Wildcats, who are looking to clinch a share of their third straight PTC championship, and Rovers have gone to extra innings this season.
Both times, Mogadore and Rootstown ultimately went nine with the home team pulling out a walk-off victory in the bottom of the ninth.
"They are highly competitive," Byers said. "They're big games on our schedule, big games in the league. We know that they're going to bring the talent and our goal is to just bring it back."
There’s no reason to think that will change anytime soon.
Both the Rovers and Wildcats are guided by sophomore aces.
(Mogadore’s Katie Gardner was also brilliant Monday in allowing just three runs — two earned — over 8⅔ innings.)
Both the Rovers and Wildcats are full of young talent all over the diamond.
So when Krieger suited up Monday, she knew what was in for.
"I definitely have to think about it throughout the day while I'm at school," Krieger said. "Sit there and think about what happened last time that I can improve on."
As Krieger celebrated her 16th birthday with another majestic performance, all Portage County softball fans could celebrate the birth of a new rivalry.
"Like this year's finally over with, but now it's like, the next two years, it's the same thing," Mogadore coach Jeff Fankhauser said. "I mean that's a great team. They play really well."
Natalie Hammerschmidt excels at, behind the plate for Rootstown
As good as Krieger was Monday, her batterymate Natalie Hammerschmidt was no less impressive, particularly in the fourth inning.
In the top of the fourth, Hammerschmidt came up with several blocks on pitches in the dirt with a runner on third to preserve a scoreless tie. In the bottom of the inning, the catcher broke the stalemate with a towering blast over the center-field wall.
"She had a great, great effort today all around," Byers said. "She definitely is a wall back there and then her offense is really picking up."
Moreover, per Krieger, Hammerschmidt played a critical role in the sophomore ace's success, particularly with her ability to frame Krieger's heaters on the knees.
"She's there for me all the time," Krieger said. "She really helps me get the calls that I need. All those calls that were at the knees, she helped me get."
Lily Hotchkiss steps up for Mogadore
With the graduation of Paige Gerring last season, Fankhauser knew he needed a new shortstop.
He considered speedy McKenna Whitehead, but there was one problem.
The Wildcats coach loved the way Whitehead handled second base.
So he decided to give freshman Lily Hotchkiss a shot.
"I love McKenna," Fankhauser said. "She was going to be my shortstop, but I love McKenna at second and she's playing really well at second and I just didn't want to mess that up. So I kept working with Lily. I said, 'Lily, it's yours to lose.'"
Hotchkiss has taken full advantage of the opportunity and has also provided a lift at the plate, batting third for Mogadore Monday afternoon.
Hotchkiss showed poise beyond her years in the top of the seventh with the Wildcats trailing 1-0 and on the verge of stranding runners on second and third.
With Mogadore down to its final out, Hotchkiss managed to smoke an inside pitch up the middle to give the visiting team its first lead of the afternoon.
"She's done a really good job for a freshman," Fankhauser said. "She hits the ball really well for us."
This article originally appeared on Record-Courier: Celebrating Shelbie Krieger's birthday and the birth of a rivalry
