LAKEWOOD Freshman slugger Kahlee Barrio was responsible for three runs in the fifth inning of Lakewoods 4-3 defeat of Granite Falls, but the Cougars were almost undone by errors.
Lakewood errors put Granite Falls on the board midway into the April 25 match-up. Though a third-inning single by Granite Falls Stacy Todd was the teams only base hit that inning, it turned into a run as the Cougars fumbled with the ball.
But despite dropping two games to the Tigers earlier this season, the Cougars persisted.
Lakewood had a slew of hits in the fifth inning as catcher Becca Bean, designated hitter Emily Burkholder and pitcher Kally Behen all got on base. Behen and Burkholders pinch runners were on base when Barrio came up.
The freshman saw a pitch she liked and made contact.
It was a triple, and batted in the two Cougars on base.
Then shortly after, with teammate Nicole Queen at the plate, Barrio stole home too.
That might have been it, except an error in the top of the seventh opened the door for a comeback. A couple of walks to open the inning put two Tigers on base.
Barrio to third baseman Amanda Bean stopped one of the runners, but a single put another Granite Falls player on base. Another intended stop at third by Lakewood turned into two game-tying runs by Granite Falls.
We lost some confidence, Lakewood head coach Steve Barker later said of the errors. But we banged right back.
It did not look good for the Cougars as the Tiger defense forced an extra inning, quickly getting outs one, two and three from consecutive Lakewood batters.
The game appeared headed for a ninth inning when umpires declared Lakewood runner Nicole Queen out as she advanced from second base to third, the teams third out. But what had been called a tag of Queen turned out to be a miscommunication between the umps, and Granite Falls retook the field.
Lakewood seized the momentum.
Outfielder Amanda Nunley, who had a double in the sixth inning, came up big again for Lakewood, slamming the game-winning RBI.
The victory was a sweet one for the Cougars, whose schedule put them up against the conferences top three teams in successive games.
The top three teams went to state, Barker explained of Lakewood opponents Granite Falls, Archbishop Murphy and Cedarcrest. Though the Cougars lost their first match against each of the teams, they beat Cedarcrest in the second round of games.
Our goal is to get two this time we got Granite Falls, he said.
Barker credited the girls focus for the win, but spread around the praise for his players.
Becca (Bean) had hits the first three times at bat. She has probably been our most consistent hitter, he said, adding that Bean leads the team in runs and hits. Barrio, who had the triple, has also had a strong season at bat, Barker said.
Shes just a freshman. Shes leading our team, hitting .450. Shes hitting better than any freshman Ive ever had, he said. And of course Kally (Behen), when shes on, is a great pitcher.
The Cougars hopes to defeat two of the conferences top three teams will hinge on their game against Cedarcrest. Lakewood lost its April 27 game at Archbishop Murphy 11-1.
The claws came out in the bottom of the sixth as the Wildcats dropped six runs on Lakewood.
Burkholder hit a double to bat in Amanda Nunley for the Cougars sole run. Nunley and Becca Bean were both 2-for-3 at the plate.

At Lakewood H.S. (April 25)

Lakewood 0 0 0 0 3 0 0 1 4
G. F. 0 0 1 0 0 0 2 0 3

At Archbishop Murphy (April 27)

Lakewood 0 0 0 0 0 1 1
A. Murphy 0 0 1 1 3 6 11