Softball: Hull's walk-off homer gives Buffalo Grove MSL title over Barrington

Senior Hannah Hull will never forget the final at-bat on her home field at Buffalo Grove.

It not only made her the all-time leading home run hitter (23) in Bison softball history but it gave BG a Mid-Suburban League championship for the first time since 1999 when the Bison won back-to-back crowns.

With runners on first and third and one out in the bottom of the seventh inning against 21-time divisional champion Barrington, Hull smacked a 1-0 outside pitch over the right field fence to give the East champions (22-5) a 7-5 triumph over the West champs (29-5),

"Oh my god. I was on deck and as soon as she hit it, I threw my bat down." said winning pitcher Kate Ryan (10-4). "I knew the second she hit it was going over. Hananh has been doing really well this season and I was so confident in her and it was the best outcome I could ever have thought of."

Hull had actually thought about hitting a winning homer in the title game.

"She pictured in her mind and it came through," said Bison first-year coach Martha Kelly.

"It was a goal," Hull said. "The timing was perfect. It's a pretty big rivalry against Barrington so I was excited to get it against them and excited for my teammates. It was really exciting."

Hull's blast broke the former mark of standout Andrea DiPrima (played at Northwestern). It was her fifth of the season after six last spring and 12 as a sophomore.

While Hull ended with a homer, Barrington senior pitcher Allie Goodwin started with one, crushing a 2-1, one-out pitch over the center field fence as the game's second batter.

Goodwin (3-for-4) blasted another 2-1 one-out pitch over the right field fence to give Barrington the 5-4 lead in the top of the fifth inning.

Goodwin's 2 homers tied her for career home runs (program record 43) with junior catcher Emma Kavanagh (2-for-4), whose heads-up steal of home plate gave Barrington a 4-1 lead in the top of the fourth. Nikki Vojack and Goodwin each had base hits in the 3-run inning for the visitors who also took advantage of 2 errors and an RBI ground out by Lexi Thomas, who later doubled in the sixth inning.

"I told the kids we lost to the better team," said Barrington coach Perry Peterson. "They played better than we did and deserved to win. Hats off to them, I am excited as much for them as I am for our kids having an opportunity to play in the game."

The first time the two teams played this spring, the game went 14 innings over two days with the Fillies winning 4-0.

"There wasn't much difference between the two games," Peterson said. "They could have easily won the first one just as we could easily have won the second. It's just two very even teams playing competitively."

"We had a really tough game against Barrington last time," said Hull (1-for-2, 2 walks). "We got them in the regular season last year and they beat us in the championship. Now it's the opposite so this feels really good."

It looked good for Barrington to increase its lead in the sixth with runners on second and third and one out. But catcher JJ Jakusalem made a nifty diving catch on a bunt and then fired a strike to Hull at third to double up the runner.

Ryan also got out of trouble in the seventh when Barrington had singles from Mimi Cline and Kavanagh but did not score.

Then came the decisive bottom of the inning.

Kayla O'Malley drew a leadoff walk. Leah Hampton (RBI double in the first inning) put down a perfect sacrifice bunt before Jenna Kosnoff's infield single gave BG two runners on base for Hull.

"I knew right when it went off the bat it was going to go out," she said. "I was just trying to get Kayla home from third. Nothing special."

It turned out as special as any moment in Hull's career.

BG won its first title since coach Laura Stock's 98 and 99 teams.

This time, it was Kelly getting the chance to lead the Bison, whose multiple hitters were Kosnoff (2-for-4, RBI single in third inning) and McKenna Wagner (2-for-3).

"I'm not going to sleep tonight," the rookie coach said with a smile. "That was so much fun. The adrenaline is pumping 100 miles per hour.

"What you've got to understand is that this has nothing to do with me. It's about these girls. They've dedicated their time and energy and they bring it every day to practice and then it shows up in games. It's all on them. I tell them the losses are mine, the wins are theirs."

Thursday's win was one they'll never forget.