Shiner's season ends in regional final
Thursday, May 24, 2018
by Marcus Gutierrez, Victoria Advocate Sports Writer
AdvoSports.com Article | Shiner Lady Comanche Softball | Shiner Comanche Sports Home Page
LA GRANGE — Shiner seniors Kailey Williams, Bethany Nevlud, and Sammi Kremling hugged their teammates with a lot of emotion on Thursday night.
Shiner senior pitcher Bethany Nevlud slings a pitch to a Normangee batter during the Class 2A Region IV-2A final vs Normangee in La Grange. all photos by Evan Lewis, Victoria Advocate
[ click on any photo to enlarge ]
The Lady Comanches had just lost a 7-1 decision to Normangee in the Region IV-2A final one-game playoff at Leopard Field at La Grange High School.
Williams reminded them of how special it is to play for Shiner.
“I have learned so much from playing sports from volleyball, basketball, and softball,” Williams said. “I have had heartbreaking moments and I have had great moments here with Shiner. Sometimes you get thrown a curveball and you just have to roll with it. I learned the importance of teamwork and being there for someone. My life really has changed.”
Normangee was playing in its first regional final and advanced to the state tournament for the first time in school history.
The Lady Comanches (31-8-1) were making their sixth straight appearance in the regional final.
The loss also ended the Lady Comanches’ streak of three straight state tournament appearances.
“I told the girls I was very proud of them,” said Shiner coach Steven Cerny. “We have done some unbelievable things, but not everyone gets that opportunity.
"It hurts when you don't get to make it back, but at the same time we have come a long way. We had great team chemistry and I couldn't be more proud of these girls. I just thought Normangee played an excellent tonight more than anything else.”
Shiner senior shortstop Kailey Williams fields a ground ball and makes a clean throw to first base during the Region IV-2A final in La Grange.
The Lady Panthers (30-4) jumped out to 3-0 lead in the top of the first inning.
“They came out hot that first inning and scored three runs,” said Williams, a four-year letterman. “We had a couple of errors, but that’s part of the game. We knew coming into the game that there were going to be errors, but they just took advantage of them.”
Shiner committed two errors to start the game, and Normangee’s Ashlyn Teran hit a double to bring home the first run.
Shiner’s third error of the first inning allowed the Lady Panthers to score two additional runs.
“The first inning was a tough start,” Cerny said. “We had some errors there, but they had speed. Speed sometimes forces those things because they make you rush a little bit.”
Shiner’s lone run came in the bottom of the second inning when Kremling hit a RBI single.
But the Lady Comanches had only three hits and struggled at the plate against Normangee's Teran.
The left-hander pitched a complete game with four strikeouts.
“I’m going to give credit to that pitcher,” Williams said. “She’s really good and has nasty spin on the ball. We just fell short tonight.”
Shiner senior Sammi Kremling hustles to first base to beat out a throw during the Region IV-2A final in La Grange.
The Lady Panthers added a run in the third, fourth, fifth, and sixth innings.
“Everything we hit went right to them and they made the plays,” Cerny said. “Every time they got a runner on base they would capitalize. Somehow, someway, they found a way to get their runners home and it just kind of added up. The run total there just got to be too much to overcome. I thought our girls battled and I thought they played hard.”
Nevlud, a four-year starter, finished the season 22-4-1 in the circle for the Lady Comanches.
In her four years, Nevlud and the Lady Comanches made three state tournament appearance and won two state championships.
Nevlud was the Most Valuable Player of the state final game when she was a freshman.
“It’s remarkable,” said Nevlud, who will play at Texas Lutheran University. “Not a lot of people can say that they have done that and I wouldn't trade all my teammates for anything in the world.
"Playing softball here is going to help me so much more in the future," she added. "Sometimes you come up short in sports and it’s going to take time to accept that. You have to give credit where it’s due.”
Williams is confident Shiner's underclassmen will use the loss as motivation for next year.
“Our slogan this year was ‘unfinished business’ to get back to state after losing last year,” Williams said. “We fell short again this year and it does hurt.
"This just gives them more motivation for next year and they have to come back even harder. This is where they belong and I’m sure that they will keep the softball tradition at Shiner going.”
BOX SCORE Class 2A Region IV Final - One Game La Grange High School, La Grange Thursday, May 24, 2018 Normangee 7, Shiner 1 123 456 4 -- R H E Normangee 301 111 1 -- 11 7 1 Shiner 010 000 0 -- 1 3 3 W - Ashlyn Teran. L - Bethany Nevlud. Highlights - (S) Sammi Kremling 1-for-2, RBI; Courtney Boedeker 1-for-3; Bethany Nevlud 1-for-3, 2B. (N) Ashlyn Teran 2-for-4, 2B, RBI; Haley Ross 1-for-4, RBI. Records - Shiner 31-8-1; Normangee 30-4.
Marcus Gutierrez is a sports writer for the Victoria Advocate.
Contact him at 361-580-6588 or mgutierrez@vicad.com
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