Stamford, Conn., scored on a wild pitch with two outs in the bottom of the 10th inning this afternoon to defeat Henderson-Vance 2-1 in the Babe Ruth World Series for 12-and-under girls softball in Cherry Hill, N.J.
The loss forces Henderson-Vance into an elimination game Thursday afternoon.
Neither team managed a hit through the six innings that constitute a regulation game at this level.
Henderson-Vance starter Jordan Garrett was perfect until she walked a batter in the sixth. She still faced the minimum of 18 batters because catcher Victoria Burwell later threw the runner out at third.
Henderson-Vance had five girls reach base in the first six innings against Stamford starter Jennifer Joseph, but three of them were erased trying to grab an extra base. None got as far as third base.
Garrett and Joseph left the mound after the sixth.
Morgan Adcock’s two-out triple in the seventh against Ashley Simoneau was the game’s first hit, but she was stranded when Burwell popped out to second.
Strikeout specialist Jessica Rowland took the mound for Henderson-Vance in the seventh and did her thing, striking out the side.
The offenses broke through in the eighth.
Garrett singled with one out, and Allison Perry ran for her. She reached second on a passed ball and third on an infield hit by Natalie Reavis. After Reavis stole second, Lindsey Carroll reached on an error by shortstop Julianne Vincent. Perry scored for Henderson-Vance on the play, and Reavis moved to third. But Vincent through Reavis out at the plate on a grounder from Kristin Currin, then handled a grounder from Brooke Pulley to end the Henderson-Vance threat.
The failure to score a second run proved crucial in the bottom of the eighth. Vincent led off with a single, Stamford’s first hit of the game. She moved to second on a passed ball, reached third on a groundout and scored the game-extending run on a Simoneau groundout.
Both teams threatened in the ninth. Adcock had her second two-out triple of the game for Henderson-Vance but got no farther. Stamford then used a walk and a hit batsman to get runners on second and third, but Rowland struck out three consecutive batters.
After Henderson-Vance had a three-up, three-down 10th, Vincent got her second consecutive single off Rowland with one out. She took second during a strikeout, then stole third with two outs. After Rowland walked Simoneau, a pitch eluded Burwell, and Vincent raced home with the winning run.
The loss does not end Henderson-Vance’s tournament but makes its path to the championship much longer. The team will have to win Thursday afternoon, then win twice Friday and twice Saturday.