Grant Union/Prairie City players line up for the awards ceremony after losing to Lakeview in the OSAA 2A/1A state championship game at Jane Sanders Stadium in Eugene on Friday, June 3, 2022.

The Grant Union/Prairie City softball team had faced Lakeview twice this season and emerged with victories on both occasions.

Their third matchup of the season went a different way as the Lady Prospectors fell to the Lady Honkers 5-3 in the finals of the Oregon State Activities Association 2A state softball tournament at Jane Sanders Stadium in Eugene on Friday, June 3.

The Lady Pros finished the first inning up 1-0 and everything looked to be going according to plan. Lakeview struck back in the third inning, however, putting a pair of runs on the board to lead 2-1 headed into the fourth. The fourth was scoreless, with Grant Union going three up- three down and Lakeview leaving two on base to keep the game at 2-1 headed into the fifth inning.

Lakeview would add another run in the fifth with an RBI double and push their lead to 3-1 headed into the sixth. The sixth inning got off to a promising start for the Lady Pros, with Savannah Watterson leading off the frame with a triple to right field. A Riley Robertson single two at-bats later would see Watterson score from third to put the Lady Pros within striking distance at 3-2. Halle Parsons would double to center field on the next at-bat, and Paige Weaver would be thrown out at home trying to score off the Parsons double. Raney Anderson would fly out the next at-bat to keep the contest at 3-2 entering the final frame.

A pair of wild pitches set the table for two Lady Honker runs to score, which pushed the Lakeview lead to 5-2 headed into the bottom of the seventh inning. Ava Gerry would score a run for the Lady Pros in the bottom of the seventh inning following an Addy Northway groundout to cut the Lakeview lead to 5-3 with one more out before the end of the contest. The rally was not to be, however, as Watterson would strike out to end the contest at 5-3 and leave the Lady Pros just short of their first state softball championship in school history.

Robertson led the Lady Pros at the plate, finishing 2-3 with a pair of RBIs. Northway provided the other RBI for the Lady Pros while finishing 1-4, with an RBI and a run scored. Harli Grove didn’t log an RBI or run scored but did finish the game a perfect 3-3 at the plate.

Drew Williams pitched the entire contest for the Lady Pros. Williams finished the game with eight hits surrendered and a single earned run while striking out 15 batters. Grant Union/Prairie City finished the contest with an uncharacteristic seven errors and stranded five runners on base. The Lady Pros never reclaimed the lead after falling behind in the third inning.

Despite the disappointing final game, Grant Union/Prairie City softball coach Zach Williams said it was a great season and that the girls battled all year to get to the championship game.

“It wasn’t our day. We got outplayed, and we have to tip our hats to Lakeview. Drew pitched really well and we hit really well. We didn’t play solid defense, and it cost us,” he said.

“We will miss the five seniors that played their last game on Friday, and we wish them the best after graduation.”

Williams also said the team couldn’t have accomplished what it did without the support of the community and his coaching staff.

“We have been very humbled by the support and excitement of the community, and we want to thank everyone that came out and cheered us on,” he said. “We had hoped to bring the title back to Grant County, but we’ll give it our best shot again next season. I would also like to thank my assistant coaches, Levi Watterson, Brandon Culley, Amy Martin and our AD, Ryan Gerry. We couldn’t do any of this without them.”

The second-place finish is the best state softball result in school history for the Lady Prospectors, who finished the season with a record of 26-2. Grove, Weaver, Robertson, Emily Finley and Paige Gerry all played their final game for the Lady Pros in Eugene.