ST. GEORGE — The Enterprise Wolves won their second straight 2A softball state championship, capping off the tournament with successive wins over Beaver on Friday and Saturday.
Playing at the Spanish Fork Softball Complex, the Wolves came from behind to defeat the Beavers 6-5 in Friday’s semifinal. Beaver had scored four runs in the top of the seventh to take a 5-4 lead.
However, with two out in the bottom of the seventh, Enterprise senior Brooke Humphries belted a two-run home over the center field fence to drive in teammate Kylnee Reber and herself to win the game in thrilling fashion.
Following that defeat, Beaver dropped into the one-loss bracket, where they played Parowan on Saturday morning. The Beavers won 3-2 and earned a rematch with the Wolves in the final.
In Saturday afternoon’s championship game, Enterprise led 4-2 after four innings but scored three more runs in the fifth to gain more breathing room.
Enterprise’s ace pitcher Blakelee Christiansen ended the contest by retiring the side in the top of the seventh, striking out the first and third batters and getting the second one to pop up to shortstop and fellow senior Addi Nelson.
Christiansen picked up both compete-game victories against Beaver, throwing more than 100 pitches in each game. She also was the winning pitcher in Thursday’s 7-1 win over Grand County and Friday’s 15-1 victory over Altamont.
Enterprise head coach Katye Jones said Christiansen’s solid performance in the circle throughout the tournament was a fitting way for her to cap off her four-year high school career.
“She knew what the pressure was like, because she’s been there, done that,” Jones said. “She’s just been our go-to pitcher since her freshman year. She’s been clutch for us, really. There was a little more pressure, I think, this year for her, being her senior year. She didn’t hit as well as she would’ve liked, but I think she focused more on her pitching than hitting. Which is OK, you know, because her other teammates were there to back her up on offense if she was struggling a little.”
Jones said the Wolves were motivated to come back and win Friday’s game, right after shortstop Nelson had gotten injured in a hard collision with a Beaver baserunner who had just rounded second base.
Beaver ended up taking a one-run lead in the top of the seventh, Jones noted.
“We were little worried in that aspect because there was so many emotions tied to what happened,” Jones said of the collision that took Nelson out of the game.
Nelson, a senior, bats second in the lineup and is one of the team’s leaders, her coach noted.
“And so the infielders and outfielders who were on the field at the time got together and said, ‘Now we’ve got to do it for Addi,'” Jones added. “That was a little bit of our drive in the bottom of the seventh because they knew Addi couldn’t do it for them, so now they were doing it for her and were going to get the win for her.”
Fortunately, Jones said, Nelson recovered well enough to be able to return to the lineup for Saturday’s title game, where she went 2-for-4 at the plate, scored two runs and drove in another as the Wolves cruised to an 8-3 victory.
The win marked Enterprise’s fourth-ever state softball title, all of them coming over the past five years.
Coach Jones said that even though the Wolves are losing five seniors to graduation, she hopes the team will continue its winning tradition.
“We’ve got a big task in front of us to find those girls and fill in those positions,” she said, expressing her confidence that her players will respond to the challenge.
“Everyone filled a role where they needed to be, whether they were on the bench or whether they were on the field,” Jones said. “Our theme this year was ‘We Are One.’ It doesn’t matter who’s out there playing us, we’re all in this together. We’re all one family and one big team.”
Photo Gallery
Enterprise senior Blakelee Christiansen delivers a pitch against Beaver in the 2A state softball championship game, Spanish Fork, Utah, May 10-11, 2024 | Photo courtesy of Jessie Platt, St. George News Enterprise players in action during the 2A state softball playoffs, Spanish Fork, Utah, May 10-11, 2024 | Photo courtesy of Jessie Platt, St. George News Brooke Humphries of Enterprise celebrates after reaching base safely against Beaver during the 2A state softball playoffs, Spanish Fork, Utah, May 10-11, 2024 | Photo courtesy of Jessie Platt, St. George News Enterprise players talk to one another on the field during one of their games against Beaver in the 2A state softball playoffs, Spanish Fork, Utah, May 10-11, 2024 | Photo courtesy of Jessie Platt, St. George News Enterprise players talk to one another on the field during one of their games against Beaver in the 2A state softball playoffs, Spanish Fork, Utah, May 10-11, 2024 | Photo courtesy of Jessie Platt, St. George News Enterprise players talk to one another on the field during one of their games against Beaver in the 2A state softball playoffs, Spanish Fork, Utah, May 10-11, 2024 | Photo courtesy of Jessie Platt, St. George News Enterprise players in action during the 2A state softball playoffs, Spanish Fork, Utah, May 10-11, 2024 | Photo courtesy of Jessie Platt, St. George News Enterprise players in action during the 2A state softball playoffs, Spanish Fork, Utah, May 10-11, 2024 | Photo courtesy of Jessie Platt, St. George News Enterprise players and coaches celebrate 2A state softball championship, Spanish Fork, Utah, May 11, 2024 | Photo courtesy of Jessie Platt, St. George News Enterprise players and coaches celebrate 2A state softball championship, Spanish Fork, Utah, May 11, 2024 | Photo courtesy of Jessie Platt, St. George News Enterprise players and coaches pose in the main hallway of their schools after returning to town following second straight state 2A softball championship, Enterprise, Utah, May 11, 2024 | Photo courtesy of Jessie Platt, St. George News Enterprise players and coaches ride a fire truck to celebrate their second straight state 2A softball championship, Enterprise, Utah, May 11, 2024 | Photo courtesy of Jessie Platt, St. George News Enterprise players and coaches ride a fire truck to celebrate their second straight state 2A softball championship, Enterprise, Utah, May 11, 2024 | Photo courtesy of Jessie Platt, St. George News
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