Both the Blue Jays and Cardinals gave it their all in the championship on Monday night. After Blue Jays pitcher Sophia Wilson shut down the Cardinals with a quick top of the first inning, where she recorded two strike-outs, the Blue Jays wasted no time getting the bats going. By playing small-ball, getting hit after hit, the Blue Jays jumped out to a 13-0 lead by the end of the 1st. The Blue Jays had contributions from nearly every batter in the line-up, going through the order nearly 2 full times.
However, the Cardinals never gave up, despite the tough odds. In the top of the 2nd Sabre Scaccia had a nice RBI single, along with a stolen base. The Blue Jays would extend their lead to 17-1 after the end of the 2nd, by continuing their trend of playing team softball.
The Cardinals continued to battle, as they would score 4 runs in the top of the 3rd, with contributions from Paige Crompton, Cierra Williams, and Rylie Myers among others. In addition, the Cardinals shut down the Blue Jays high-flying offense in the 3rd, as Sabre Scaccia recorded 2 strikeouts. However, the Blue Jays had built too large a lead to overcome, as Wilson then returned the favor by shutting-out the Cardinals in the top of the 4th. In the inning, Isabella Hooley made a textbook play at shortstop on a hard-hit ball, gathering herself to throw to first to record the out.
The Blue Jays tacked on 3 more runs in the bottom of the 4th, and the Cardinals tacked on a couple in the top of the 5th. Ultimately, the Blue Jays held on to clinch the championship, with a final score of 20-7. Congratulations to both teams on having great seasons, and congratulations to the Blue Jays on winning the 2018 Softball Championship!
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