Maybe Megan Heagney should change her name to Megan Houdini. After all, the Shadyside senior pitcher got herself – and her Lady Tiger teammates – out of several precarious situations in the Ohio Division IV state softball tournament last weekend at Firestone Stadium in Akron.

However, none were filled with as much drama as the one she was facing Saturday night in Summit County. It was the pitch of her career. Heck, it was the pitch of the 18-year-old’s life thus far.

Top of the seventh inning of the still scoreless state championship game. Bases loaded, two outs and a full count on North Lewisburg Triad’s Maddy Collier.

With fans from both school’s on their feet loudly cheering their respective schools on, Heagney induced Collier to roll a weak grounder to second baseman Kaitlyn Weaver, who barehanded the ball and flipped it to first baseman Sarah Dierkes for the precious third out.

“I was not walking off this field my senior year with a bases-loaded walk,” she said of the pitch. “No way I was giving them an easy run like that. No way!”

So, what was going through her mind as bedlam was about to break loose, one way or the other?

“Like I’ve told my teammates all year, stay calm,” she revealed while clutching the state championship trophy. “That’s what I did.”

Her teammates rewarded her efforts with a run in the bottom of the eighth in one of the more unusual ways – a suicide-squeeze bunt!

In her final high school game, Heagney came within two strikeouts of tying the Division IV state tournament record of 15 held by four players. She only walked two and scattered four harmless singles.

“That was my best pitching all year,” the Walsh University recruit said. “I was pretty focused today.”

Dunn It for the Seniors

Lindsey Dunn might only be a junior, but she’s been playing softball with this senior class for a long, long time.

“I’ve been with these seniors since I was little. To have them go out as state champions makes me so proud, but with them leaving, it’s also sad,” she said while choking back her emotions.

It All Starts at the Top

Weaver is the prototypical leadoff hitter: left-handed, good eye, cat-quick and very knowledgeable of the game.

She can lay down the bunt and beat it out. She can slap to the left side with power, and, as showed in the bottom of the eighth, a routine groundball is not always routine with her hustle down the line.

In eight postseason games, Weaver hit a sizzling .567 with 17 hits in 30 at-bats. She scored nine runs, stole two bases, walked twice and drove in a run. She only struck out one time.

Defensively, she was all over the dirt surface, whether it be from second base – her customary position – or third base, where she played a couple of innings in Friday’s 6-5, 8-inning, win over New Riegel.

In the semifinals, Weaver raced in from third base on a bunt and caught the ball in foul territory in front of the first base dugout. Earlier in the contest, she attempted to make a diving catch – while playing second base – along the third base line, but she couldn’t hold on when she hit the dirt.

Looking Ahead

Coaches never like to look ahead, but once the realization of a state championship sinks in, head coach Jillian Ongley has a lot to look forward to.

The Lady Tigers, in addition to the seasoned Dunn back for another year behind the plate and despite losing Heagney, Dierkes, Kenzie Fielding, Shelby Benedetta and Andrea Gooch, return a good nucleus. Weaver, Kayla Smith, Mackenzie Osman and Jaelyn Greenwood were all vital pieces of the puzzle as freshmen, as was sophomore Karly Klug.

Replacing the group of seniors won’t be an easy task, but from what I’ve been told, the Lady Tigers have a couple of pretty good groups on youngsters in their den.

Congratulations, not only to the players and coaching staff on a state championship season, but to all the fans that made the back-to-back two-hour drives to the Rubber City in support of the Lady Tigers!

That pride was also on display during Sunday’s pep rally which closed a part of the loop in Tiger Town.