Highlands Ranch – It is dangerous pitting Highlands Ranch against Arvada West on the softball field.
Two games between the teams last season combined for 22 innings, and Thursday’s season opener for both teams had the makings of another long one.
But Highlands Ranch pitcher Cassie Caley knocked in Raven Richardson with a single in the bottom of the fifth inning, and Melisa Ryba added a run in the sixth to give the Falcons an 8-6 Class 5A nonleague victory at Cresthill Field.
“Every time we play these guys, it’s close,” Highlands Ranch coach Bruce Wright said.
Arvada West coach Jamie Thomson agreed, “These are two great teams and they rise to the occasion.”
The Wildcats struck first when leadoff hitter Jessie Schoepflin ripped a triple to start the game and Cristy Grubbs knocked her in with an RBI single.
But No. 7 Highlands Ranch responded a half-inning later. Richardson, a sophomore third baseman, cranked a two-RBI double over the infield, starting the back-and-forth on the scoreboard.
In the third, Arvada West struck back when Schoepflin scored on a passed ball to make the score 2-2. A pair of walks put potential runners on, and Candie Kauffman made one of them count with a single, scoring Grubbs.
“We battled back and forth. It never felt like we were out of it,” said Schoepflin, who went 2-for-4 with two runs scored.
But the Falcons took back the lead in the next at-bat, leading off the inning with three singles. The hit by Kailee Vessey brought home Ryba, and a long fly out by Richardson allowed Kamee Vessey to score.
“We are good enough to beat any team,” said a confident Richardson, who went 2-for-3 with three RBIs. “We are not going to lose one game.”
Highlands Ranch took its biggest lead in the bottom of the fourth when Ryba, a Denver Post All-Colorado selection as a freshman last season, blasted a two-run home run to set up the Falcons with a 6-3 lead. It was the first home run by a Falcon on their home field.
“I was ready to play a game. We’ve been working hard for two weeks and it felt good to get a play somebody else,” said Ryba, who finished 2-for-3 with four runs scored and two RBIs.
Ryba also pitched the final two innings, striking out three, to secure the game.
Arvada West tied the game with a three-run fifth inning, with five batters racking up either a hit, run or RBI. But the Falcons added runs in the fifth and sixth innings.
Arvada West 102 030 0 – 6 7 3
Highlands Ranch 202 211 x – 8 8 1
Arvada West – Je. Schoepflin ss 4-2-2-0, Baker cf 4-1-0-0, Grubbs 1b 3-2-2-1, Kramer p 2-0-0-1, Kauffman c 4-0-2-2, Kenney cr 0-1-0-0, Wambeke 3b 2-0-0-0, Beatty rf 3-0-1-1, Jo. Schoepflin 2b 3-0-0-0, Tani lf 3-0-0-0. Totals – 28-6-7-5.
Highlands Ranch – Ryba cf 3-4-2-2, Kam. Vessey 2b 4-2-2-0, Kai. Vessey ss 4-0-1-1, Richardson 3b 3-1-2-3, Vagts 1b 3-0-0-0, Caley p 3-0-1-1, Ver Woert c 1-0-0-0, Wright cr 0-1-0-0, Burnett rf 3-0-0-0, Lopez lf 3-0-0-0. Totals – 27-8-8-7.
Batteries – Kramer and Kauffman; Caley, Ryba (6) and Ver Woert. W – Caley (1-0). L – Kramer (0-1). WP – Kramer. PB – Ver Woert.
E – Kramer, Grubbs, Je. Schoepflin; Kam. Vessey. LOB – Arvada West 5; Highlands Ranch 5. SB – Je. Schoepflin, Baker, Grubbs; Richardson, Ryba. 2B – Richardson. 3B – Je. Schoepflin, Grubbs. HR – Ryba (one on in fourth). Time – 1:27.
