Wolverines Defeat Marshall Statesmen in Regulation of Scrimmage

West Potomac staged a furious bottom of the seventh rally to beat George C. Marshall High School 2-1 in the final of two scrimmages to start the season.  The teams played on, but your intrepid reporter was too cold to stay past the top of the 8th inning.  Frankly, since they only play seven innings during the season, that's as long as notes were kept.

The game started with a bang, as the first Statesmen woman tripled to right,and the second Lady Statesmen (sorry, but "Statesmen" isn't the easiest team nickname to work with) smacked a hard single to put Marshall up 2-1.  That did not bode well for the Wolverines, but Jayne Orleans settled down and retired 14 in a row before issuing a harmless two-out walk in the top of the fifth.  Jayne got four more outs to finish off the sixth inning.

Jayne struck out four in a row in the top of the second/third, and Christina Dillard added a whiff in the seventh as Wolverines k'd five batters.

Meanwhile, the Marshall pitcher bewitched the Wolverine hitters with a wicked curveball.  The umpire behind the plate helped by baffling the West Po batters with a strike zone extending from their ankles to the left-handed batters box.

Until the bottom of the seventh, West Po could only muster three fair balls -- a ground out, a pop out, and Nikki Minnis reaching first on an error by the shortstop.  Fifteen strikeouts in the first nineteen batters didn't provide much offense, although it helped the game go quickly.

The game changed in the bottom of the seventh, when Olivia Manous led off with a walk.  Nikki moved her to second with a groundout back to the mound.  After the second out, Jayne Orleans smacked a double to right to tie the game.  Raven Williams smacked a hard infield single that the shortstop made a nice play to keep from reaching the outfield.  

Annabelle Miller hit a major league pop up, that, thanks to the stiff breeze, dropped in for the game winning hit.  West Potomac parents debated whether it was a hit or an error, but this wizened scribe scores it a hit, and since I'm writing the article, that's all that matters.

The season opens Tuesday at Lee followed by hosting crosstown rivals Mt. Vernon on Thursday.  Wolverine fans are advised to park in well-lit parts of the Lee parking lot.