THE SALT LAKE TRIBUNE
Bear River blanks Uintah
By Jennifer Gustavson
Special To The Tribune
Spanish Fork >> During the Bear River softball team's 6-0 semifinal win over Uintah at the 3A state tournament on Friday, coach Calvin Bingham never felt comfortable. Through six innings, the Bears held their ground with a two run lead, but just the night before, they'd seen a similar narrow lead go up in smoke against Union.
"They had me a little nervous" said Bingham. "We knew it wasn't a safe lead."
It wasn't until the Bears' bats caught fire in the seventh inning that
Bingham could stop holding his breath. In that inning, Bear River's first three batters connected allowing the Bears to cushion the lead to 3-0. That's when Kim Knudsen stepped to the plate and slapped a double to far center field that fell just short of the net that brought in a fourth run before Kayla Webb connected on a center field grounder to complete the rally.
"A two-run lead was nerve-wracking because we knew what Uintah was capable of," said "Knudsen. "But on our team, hitting is contagious."
With a more comfortable lead in place, Bear River secured the win with three quick outs, two caught fly balls and a strikeout by pitcher Josie Summers, to secure the win. Though the Bears were able to take the higher road back to the championship by winning each of thier games in the winners' bracket, the Bears are far from unscathered. On Thursday, Bear River narrowly escaped North Sanpete after the Hawks' Shelby Earl hit a two-run homer in the seventh to send the game to an extra inning.
But in each of the last two games, Bear River perservered down the stretch, posting big final innings to lock down a victory. Now, the Bears have a chance to defend thier 3-A state title today at 12:15 p.m.
"We're probably more anxious because we know what it feels like to be there," said Knudsen.
But given the way the Bears have been playing in recent weeks, Bingham is convinced that they are ready to defend their title.
"This is potentially the best hitting team I've ever coached," said Bingham. "We don't just have a 1-to-4 lineup. Everyone is capable of scoring."
