Softball: Prairie Ridge rallies past Jacobs on Vrba’s homer

Prairie Ridge played long ball in a big way.

Facing a six-run deficit during Wednesday’s Fox Valley Conference game against Jacobs, the Wolves flexed their power after being held scoreless over the first three innings. Reese Vrba blasted a two-run home run in the bottom of the sixth, bringing Prairie Ridge within two before Bella Moore belted a game-tying home run in the seventh.

With Indiana recruit Reese Mosolino keeping Jacobs quiet from the circle, Prairie Ridge ended the game in fitting fashion. Stepping up to the plate with runners on first and second, Vrba pounded a 3-1 pitch beyond the left-field fence for a walk-off three-run homer as Prairie Ridge clinched a 9-6 victory over the Golden Eagles in nine innings.

“It felt so good to do it for my teammates,” said Vrba, who finished with five RBI. “I was thinking about hitting it hard since we only had one out. Anything in the air would’ve gotten the runner to third, so that’s what I was trying to do and it went over. My power has been a lot better this season and I just try to think about the situation.”

Of the nine Prairie Ridge runs, seven came via the long ball. Vrba took a 2-2 pitch over the left-field fence in the sixth to bring the Wolves (4-1, 2-0 FVC) within two. After a quick top of the seventh, Parker Frey led off the bottom half with a single. Still seeking her first hit of the game, Moore tied the game on a no-doubt two-run homer to left.

Some words of encouragement from the stands provided inspiration.

“I was definitely struggling at the start of the game,” Moore said. “I just wasn’t in it. When I went up to bat, I heard my parents. I heard my best friend Kylie’s parents who were sitting there and telling me I got it. My coaches were telling me over and over again that I got this. As soon as I hit it, I thanked God. That’s exactly what I needed.”

Jacobs (6-6, 0-2 FVC) jumped on Mosolino early, scoring five runs in the top of the second and taking a big lead. Emily Popilek, who earned an RBI on a groundout in the first, ripped a two-run double to center in her next at-bat. Jacobs strung together three singles, all with two outs, before Popilek’s extra-base hit gave her team a six-run lead.

“I knew she was throwing a lot outside, so I took the ball that way,” Popilek said. “It felt really good, especially to have two strikes on me. It was a really good hit for me because I needed that momentum and I tried to let that carry me throug the game and keep my head up.”

Meanwhile, Jacobs starter Skylee Ferrante shut the Wolves down in the early frames. Ferrante, who finished with 12 strikeouts in just over eight innings pitched, logged three straight shutout frames to open the game. The right-handed sophomore also navigated around jams in the fourth and fifth innings to keep the Eagles in the lead.

“My curve was working a lot,” Ferrante said. “That’s what was working most for me. I had the confidence and support from my teammates.”

Shaking off her sketchy start, Mosolino settled in nicely. At one point, Mosolino retired eight consecutive hitters from the end of the second through the start of the fifth. From the third inning onward, only two Eagle batters reached base and both reached on Prairie Ridge errors.

“I knew that my team would be behind me and my teammates fielded those short hits,” said Mosolino, who struck out eight batters in nine innings. “It was nice to see them have my back after I struggled. My changeup was really working towards the end and my drop was too. I’d say my drop was working the best out of all of my pitches today.”

Emma Dallas lined an RBI single in the bottom of the fourth to put the Wolves on the scoreboard. Prairie Ridge tacked another run on in the fifth, where freshman Karsyn Ledgerwood laced a one-out triple into the right-center-field gap and scored on Frey’s RBI groundout.

Frey and Moore placed back-to-back singles into center field to start the bottom of the ninth. After a failed bunt attempt, Vrba’s one-out, walk-off homer ended the game and sealed the Prairie Ridge victory. Six players recorded at least two hits for the Wolves, who had 13 in total. Molly Hoch and Olivia Fillipp each had two hits for Jacobs.