by Fred Solis
The Hutchinson Tribune
ANDALE—The Andale-Garden Plain Indians are headed to the 4A State Softball Tournament for the second time in three years, following their regional championship Tuesday at Andale.
In their opener the No. 3 Indians got a two-out solo home run in the bottom of the fifth inning, with a full count by junior short stop Brooklyn Sele to break a 1-1 tie against No. 14 Rose Hill.
“I was like, ‘Anything, any pitch I see, I’m getting on top of it; something’s gonna happen,’” Sele said.
The Indians’ pitcher, Clare Krier, who went the distance, and the Andale-Garden Plain defense made the run hold up for a 2-1 victory.
The win set the stage for the championship game against No. 11 Clay Center, which beat No. 6 Pratt 10-3 earlier in the regional opener.
Tied 1-1 with Clay Center through five and a half innings, the Indians got runs in the sixth on a triple by Abby Durham and an RBI-groundout by Ryin Gibbins to go up 3-1. Gibbins, the starting pitcher, put down the Tigers in order in the top of the seventh to preserve win and send the Indians to the state tournament.
“We put a lot of work into this season, and it just comes down to, you just have to trust everything that we’ve done throughout the season and just know in those big moments that we’re going to come through with a timely hitting the timely defense,” said Indians coach Erin Carney. “I think our defense made some amazing plays tonight. Both of our pitchers looked amazing.”
The 19-5 Indians will play Monday in the state quarterfinals. Locations and game times have not been announced yet.