As the Owosso softball team departed the high school at 7:15 a.m. Saturday for its first state championship appearance, pitcher Macy Irelan could feel the unequivocal support from the community.
The team’s bus received a police and fire truck escort as it left the school with hundreds of fans cheering them on.
The Trojans gave their fans plenty to cheer about once they took the field against Marysville in the Division 2 state final at Michigan State University.
Owosso scored six unanswered runs in an 8-5 victory to claim the school’s first Michigan High School Athletic Association state title.
“I’m numb right now to be honest,” 38th-year coach JoEllen Smith said. “This hasn’t suck in. I can’t tell you how much this means to us. It’s huge in our community. We’ve never won a state title, so this is huge for all the little girls and little boys that are watching us today.”
The stands at Secchia Stadium were packed well before the start of the game, primarily filled with Owosso fans.
“That was the biggest crowd,” said Irelan, a Kent State commit. “It was keeping us upbeat and keeping us ready. We wanted to put on a show and for them to come for a reason.”
Just like they have multiple times this postseason, the Trojans (37-3) rallied for a win. They overcame a close call in the second inning that didn’t go in its favor.
With the bases loaded, Sydney Somers hit a liner down the right-field line that looked like it might have hit chalk but was called foul. If fair, the Trojans would have taken a 5-0 lead, but Somers ended up grounding out to end the inning.
Marysville (31-7) seized momentum after getting out of the inning down just two runs. It responded with three runs in the top of the third on a Kirsten Smith home run to center field.
The Vikings extended the lead in the fourth on a two-run home run from Adrian College commit Calle Perrin off Irelan.
That’s when the Trojans made their move. Irelan gave herself some support with a two-run double that tied the game at five. Owosso retook the lead later in the inning on an RBI groundout from Reyn Tuttle.
It added two insurance runs in the fifth, which was all Irelan needed. After the first two runners reached in the seventh, she induced two pop ups and a strikeout to get out of the inning unscathed.
“These girls deserve it,” said Smith, who watched her team overcome a 4-1 deficit to beat Wayland in the quarterfinals. “They’re resilient. That’s the only word you can use for them. They’re down and they come back every time through this whole postseason.”
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Smith said her players remained positive even after the close call in the second inning and giving up the lead.
“Nobody even talked about it,” she said of the foul ball call. “That could have really hurt us. They could have come in and said, ‘Bull (crap), that’s a terrible call.’ But they didn’t. Not one person in the dugout said anything about it. It’s just what it is. That kind of attitude to helps you get through things like this. They could have got down, but they haven’t this whole postseason.”
Marysville coach Ryan Rathje said he is proud of what his team accomplished this season.
“We came out against a great team and a great pitcher, we got down and they battled back and took the lead. Kept going down to the last play. Throughout the season, they have played with their hearts and have been a real special group. They are competitors and great teammates.”
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