Lady Vikings win HAAC title

Senior Kimberly Fuller's two-run homer in the finale was the difference as the Lady Vikings won their first HAAC Tournament title since 2002. (Chris Allen/Democrat-News) [Click to enlarge] [Order this photo]

FAYETTE -- Faith in one's self and one's teammates can be a powerful force in sports.

Throughout the season, the Missouri Valley College softball team has been inspired by the mantra it shouts from the dugout, "I believe, you believe, we all believe in you."

That confidence propelled the Lady Vikings to the Heart of America Conference Tournament championship Sunday with a 3-2 comeback victory at Central Methodist, and their first trip to the NAIA Championships.

"The kids put themselves in this position," remarked second-year Valley head coach Josh Miller, a key player in the Vikings' surge to the NAIA super-sectional round during his days on the baseball diamond. "They work together, they work together well, and they find a way."

Valley rode the arm of junior Tatum Hathcock for both weekend wins during its best two-out-of-three championship series against the Lady Eagles. During Saturday's opener, the Ava product tossed her third shutout of the season for a 3-0 victory.

"As a freshman, not too many people thought she'd be where she is right now," Miller admitted. "But she busted her hump all summer to get there."

The Lady Vikings scored all of their runs on solo homers, back-to-back shots from juniors Sydney Kaneshiro and Wendy Garcia in the second inning and junior Janae Borrego's one-out blast in the third.

Hathcock didn't let a runner get past second base the rest of the game, escaping from a two-on, two-out jam after sophomore Danielle Taylor and senior Kiley Lewis singled in the bottom of the seventh by fanning the Lady Eagles' final hitter.

As well as Hathcock pitched in the first game, freshman Janie Jungerman may have been even better in the nightcap -- but got no run support during Valley's 1-0 loss to snap her personal five-game win streak.

Jungerman allowed only four hits, but two came in the top of the third. Sophomore Surina Howard led off with a single, but was still on second base with two outs. However, Taylor stroked a clutch single for the game's lone run.

That was all that junior McCall Kenney needed, holding the Lady Vikings to two hits and walking no batters during a tidy 80-pitch performance for her seventh whitewash.

It was no wonder, then, that Methodist turned again to Kenney in the deciding game the next day. And for three innings, she delivered.

The Lady Eagles jumped on Hathcock with four hits for two runs, including RBI singles by sophomore Stephanie Sullivant and freshman Kayla Yount, in the bottom of the first.

They would only get one more hit the remainder of the game, only getting as many as two runners aboard due to a pair of errors in the sixth.

While Hathcock blanked Methodist (37-16) through the final six stanzas, the ninth game in a row in which has allowed two or fewer earned runs, Valley's hitters finally figured out Kenney -- who was trying to post her third win over MVC this season.

Senior Lindsey Stapp reached on an error to lead off the fourth inning for the Lady Vikings. She was bunted to second base and scored on senior Heather Sliger's double. Senior Kimberly "Kimbie" Fuller followed with a two-run homer to give Valley the lead, chasing Kenney.

"The second time through the line-up, the fourth through sixth innings, is when we go to work," Miller said. "When one of them goes, they all go."

Now they're all going, to Decatur, Ala., for the national tournament -- the Lady Vikings (33-21) winning the HAAC crown for the first time since 2002, when they were eliminated in the NAIA Region V Tournament.

Fortunately, Valley saw some of the nation's top teams at the Tucson Invitational in March, beating No. 5 Dickinson State (N.D.).

"They've put enough pressure on themselves throughout the year, so they're prepared for it," Miller declared. "If they work together and want it more than their opponent, they'll reward themselves."