Softball: Dixon outlasts Rock Falls, wins it in 10th on Tourtillott homer

ROCK FALLS – In a game full of crazy plays and nifty pitching, the Dixon softball team got the clutch hit both teams were looking for Tuesday, as Sam Tourtillott’s two-run home run in the top of the 10th inning propelled the Duchesses past Rock Falls 5-3 in a Big Northern Conference clash.

After the Rockets tied the game with a run in the bottom of the sixth, Dixon starter Elle Jarrett worked out of a jam in the seventh, and Rock Falls starter Katie Thatcher worked out of jams in the eighth and ninth innings. But Tourtillott homered on the first pitch of her fifth at-bat for the go-ahead runs in the 10th.

“It was good to finally get a win in one of these close games,” Tourtillott said. “We pulled through, made some good adjustments, and found a way to get it done.”

It was the biggest hit in a back-and-forth game that saw Dixon jump out to a 3-0 lead, only to have Rock Falls score single runs in the third, fourth and sixth innings to force extras.

Tourtillott and Ava Valk ripped leadoff doubles in the eighth and ninth innings for Dixon (13-5, 10-4 BNC), but Thatcher stranded both runners at second.

“Just trying to let the defense work and trust in my teammates, and throw the pitches I needed to get those outs we needed to get,” Thatcher said of those high-pressure late-game situations.

In the 10th, Bailey Tegeler beat out an infield single, then Tourtillott smashed the next pitch over the center-field fence for the 5-3 lead.

“I just wanted to attack the first pitch. It’s the 10th inning, the pitcher’s getting tired, and I just wanted to put a good swing on it and help my team out,” Tourtillott said. “Bailey started the inning strong for us, and I just wanted to end it for the team, get us out of the heat.”

“Fastball right down the middle. Not where I wanted it,” Thatcher said with a rueful smile.

Phillips followed with a single, then Izzi McCommons reached on an error to put two more Duchesses on base, still with nobody out. But Thatcher induced back-to-back fielder’s choice grounders, then after hitting Olivia Mowery with a pitch to load the bases, she got a comebacker to end the inning and keep the margin at two runs.

In the bottom of the 10th, Jarrett got two groundouts before Savanna Fritz singled and went all the way to third on an error. But Jarrett leaped high to snag a chopper right back to the circle and tossed underhand to first to secure the win.

Dixon grabbed a 1-0 lead in the top of the first when Tourtillott reached on an error and Ana-Kate Phillips beat out an infield single with two outs, then they advanced to second and third on a wild pitch. Tourtillott then came home on a wild pitch on a strike three that would’ve ended the inning.

In the top of the third, the Duchesses added two more runs. Tegeler used her speed to turn a bad-hop grounder into a double with one out, then slid under a tag at third on Tourtillott’s fielder’s choice grounder. Tourtillott took second on the next pitch, and Phillips ripped a two-run single up the middle for a 3-0 Dixon lead.

“We built the momentum right away, and that was big,” Jarrett said. “We would make the plays on defense and get back in and start hitting again.”

The Rockets (19-8, 10-3 BNC) answered in the bottom of the inning. Brooke Howard led off with a single, then went to second and third on a pair of wild pitches. After Jarrett got back-to-back strikeouts, Zoe Morgan ripped a two-out single to right to drive in Howard.

In the fourth, Taylor Reyna reached on a two-base error to lead off, then went to third on Fritz’s groundout before scoring on a wild pitch.

Rock Falls tied it in the sixth. Rylee Johnson singled with one out, then went to second on a groundout and to third on Howard’s bloop single. Howard took second on the next pitch, then another wild pitch allowed Johnson to score and put Howard at third with the potential go-ahead run.

But Jarrett notched a strikeout to end the inning.

In fact, the Dixon starter stranded seven Rockets in scoring position, getting out of the first, fifth, sixth and 10th innings with runners on third. Jarrett allowed three runs (two earned) and 11 hits in 10 innings, striking out 14 and walking two.

“You just have to stay calm in those situations, trust your defense, make good pitches and trust what you’re throwing,” Jarrett said.

The craziest inning was the bottom of the seventh. Thatcher led off with a triple, then Maddison Morgan drew a one-out walk; she rounded first and just kept running to second to try and draw a throw to let Thatcher score from third. The Duchesses intentionally walked Reyna to load the bases with one out.

Fritz came up and hit a soft liner to first. Phillips caught the ball, then fired to third to double off Thatcher, who was halfway home on the play. But Phillips’ throw was low and went past third base, so Thatcher turned back around and ran home with the apparent winning run.

But when Dixon third baseman McCommons retrieved the ball and brought it back into play, Thatcher had yet to tag up. Thatcher realized this and tried to scamper back to third, but McCommons tagged her for the third out in the most bizarre of inning-ending double plays.

“I wasn’t aware of what was going on until Izzi got the ball back and was they were yelling at her to tag the baserunner because she hadn’t tagged up,” Jarrett said.

That seemed to spark the Duchesses, who put runners on base in all three extra innings, while Jarrett worked 1-2-3 innings in the eighth and ninth before pitching around the two-out baserunner in the 10th.

“Once we got into extra innings, we realized we had to jump on the pitcher,” Tourtillott said. “It was our fourth or fifth time seeing her, so we were getting kind of used to her. We were good at making adjustments and we just knew we had to get some runners on, put the pressure on them.”

Thatcher gave up five runs (four earned) and nine hits in 10 innings, striking out 12 and hitting a batter while not allowing a walk. From the final put of the third inning through the end of the seventh, she retired 13 straight Duchesses, then pitched around those leadoff doubles in the eighth and ninth to keep the Rockets in it.

“Really finding the strike zone was key,” Thatcher said. “I was sort of all over the place, and once I found it, I really dialed in, and I really trusted my defense to work behind me. It was a long day, but we pushed through and did the best that we could.”