State-bound Southwest kept the faith - mySanAntonio.com

UIL state tournament

Where: McCombs Field, Austin

When: Wednesday-Saturday

Tickets: $5 student, $10 adult; $85 all-tournament pass

Class 5A

Friday's semifinals

3 p.m. — Lubbock Coronado (36-4) vs. Deer Park (37-6)

6 p.m. — The Woodlands (38-3) vs. Southwest (34-11)

Saturday's final

4 p.m. — Teams TBD

Full state pairings C9

SAN ANTONIO — There are occurrences that sometimes defy logic and make one wonder if something unforeseen is in play.

Southwest softball coach Sandra Hernandez felt that way Saturday after her team's 8-7 come-from-behind, extra-inning win over San Marcos in Game 3 of their Region IV-5A final series at St. Mary's University.

How else, Hernandez surmised, do you explain so many good things going the Dragons' way — Elizabeth Phillips' heroic plays and Kamerie Vidales' clutch pitching among them — when things appeared to be unraveling?

“I told them that God put us together for a reason, and let's just go with it,” Hernandez said. “We all believe that there's something bigger up there.”

Whether it was divine intervention or not, the Dragons (34-11) are headed to their first UIL Class 5A state tournament. They will play The Woodlands (38-3) at 6 p.m. Friday in the state semifinals.

“It's almost like a dream come true, Hernandez said. “It's very overwhelming.”

Making it this far has been nerve-wrecking at times for the Dragons. If losing Game 1 and rallying from 3-0 deficits in the final two games to beat Judson in the second round wasn't enough, then finally toppling nemesis San Benito — which ended Southwest's seasons in 2010 and 2011 — in the regional semifinals should've been.

The Dragons' emotions ran the gamut Saturday — from the joy of an early 3-0 lead to the concerns of a season ending too soon.

“We have come from behind so many times, for a second there I was like, 'Maybe we just ran out of luck,'” Hernandez said.

Phillips, though, made three crucial plays — a two-run triple to tie it at 7-7 in the sixth inning, a throw from center field to catcher Miranda Gonzales to tag out a San Marcos runner at home and deny a game-winning run in the seventh and an RBI single with two outs in the eighth — and Vidales pitched five scoreless innings in relief after San Marcos took a 7-5 advantage to help the Dragons prevail.

tthomas@express-news.net

Twitter: @mysahighschools

Source: southwest - Google News http://ift.tt/1p9HSlu