The Grant Union/Prairie City softball team congratulates pitcher Drew Williams at the plate following her home run against Toledo on Friday, May 27, 2022. The Lady Pros had four home runs in the 15-0 quarterfinal victory.

The Grant Union/Prairie City softball team cruised through the second round and quarterfinals of the state tournament at home this past week.

An 8-0 win over the Bandon Tigers and a 15-0 win over the Toledo Boomers have the Lady Pros in the state semifinals and hosting one more state tournament game.

The first-round matchup with Bandon took place on Wednesday, May 25, at the Seventh Street Sports Complex. The game was scoreless for one and a half innings until Sivanna Hodge hit a towering two-run home run in the bottom of the second to give the Lady Pros a 2-0 lead. The Lady Pros would add another run in the fourth inning before Hodge’s bat again showed itself via a two run double to give the Lady Pros a 5-0 lead headed into the fifth.

Adding another run in the fifth and a pair of runs in the sixth grew the Lady Pro lead to 8-0 with one more chance for the Lady Tigers to make a run headed into the seventh inning. A comeback was not in the cards, however. The Lady Pros blanked the Lady Tigers in the top of the seventh frame to leave the game with an 8-0 win and advance to the state quarterfinals.

The quarterfinal matchup with Special District 4 champions the Toledo Boomers two days later was even more dominant than the second-round win.

The Lady Pros tacked one run onto the scoreboard in the first inning but were still having a tough time figuring out Toledo pitcher Mariah Frederic through two frames. The floodgates opened in the third inning. Led by homers from Drew Williams, Savannah Watterson, Riley Robertson and Sivanna Hodge, the Lady Pros turned in a 12-run third to take a commanding 14-0 lead into the fourth. Another pair of runs in the bottom of the fourth inning for the Lady Pros triggered the mercy rule and ended the game at 15-0 after four innings.

Sivanna Hodge’s bat loomed large over the two games. Hodge had a home run in both contests and finished the two-game stretch a combined 4-5 at the plate with five RBIs. Drew Williams pitched both games for the Lady Pros and struck out a combined 20 batters while giving up three hits and not surrendering a single run.

Grant Union/Prairie City head coach Zach Williams said a big part of what makes the Lady Pros so dangerous is their pitching, backed by a solid defense.

“Having an above-average pitcher like Drew is definitely a big part of what has made our team successful this year,” he said. “She also knows she has an above-average defense behind her and doesn’t have to strike everybody out. She can pitch contact and get hitters to make bad contact and get outs as well.”

Williams also cited the strength of his batting lineup and pointed to Hodge’s big game against Bandon as confirmation. “Hodge was huge,” he said. “Three for four with four RBIs out of the eight spot is pretty unheard-of. Our lineup being great 1-9 definitely gives us an advantage. There is no safe spot in our lineup for a pitcher to let up.”

Williams said the key to continued success is for his team to keep doing the things that have gotten them this far into the state tournament.

“Our gameplay doesn’t change much from game to game,” he said. “Pitch well and do the little things on defense and make routine plays be routine plays. Finally, put the ball in play hard by being patient and swinging at pitches we can drive.”

The Lady Pros played fifth-seeded Nestucca on Tuesday, May 31, at the Seventh Street Sports Complex in John Day. Results were not available for that contest before press time.

A victory by the Lady Pros in the semifinal matchup would have the team traveling to Jane Saunders Stadium in Eugene to take on the winner of Lakeview and Kennedy for the 2A softball state championship. The championship game will be played on Friday, June 3, with a time still to be determined.