AUGUSTA — Most lineups have an escape hatch somewhere. You get this person out, get the next one, and then you’re out of the jam.

Most lineups, but definitely not Scarborough’s.

Additional Photos

Scarborough third baseman Erin Giles, left, tags out Skowhegan baserunner Shelly Obert after she got caught in rundown between third and second during Class A softball state championship Saturday at Cony Family Field in Augusta. Staff photo by Joe Phelan

The deluge from the Red Storm started with a leadoff home run by Marisa O’Toole and just kept coming. Scarborough scored four times in the first two innings and went on to a 9-3 victory over Skowhegan in the Class A softball final Saturday afternoon at Cony Family Field.

“They’re just a relentless lineup,” Skowhegan coach Lee Johnson said. “They have a lot of kids who can do damage. They have good pitching, good defense. They’re just a really good all-around team.”

Skowhegan finishes at 14-6 after coming from the No. 4 seed to win the Eastern A title. Scarborough ends up at 19-1.

Lefty Alyssa Williamson, a junior who has verbally committed to Drexel, allowed seven hits and struck out 10. The Indians had some good shots, as Shelby Obert went 2 for 2 with two doubles and two walks and Andrea Quirion homered over the left-field fence in the bottom of the sixth.

“I think she mixed up things enough and she did throw hard enough,” Johnson said. “She had good command and got ahead in the counts a lot. But I thought our kids made some pretty good adjustments.”

Skowhegan pitcher Kaitlyn Therriault retired eight in a row at one point, but Scarborough jumped ahead early when O’Toole hit a 2-2 pitch over the fence in left field. In the top of the second inning, Megan Murrell led things off with a double and No. 8 hitter Chloe Gorey singled her home with two out. That was followed by a bunt single from Maggie Murphy and a triple off the right-field fence by O’Toole to make it 4-0.

Scarborough opened things up and probably decided the game with three runs in the fourth. With two outs and the bases loaded via walks, Erin Giles drove in two runs with a single through the left side. Murrell added an RBI single and it was 7-0.

“I think with our team, honestly, if we were playing our best game, I think we can almost take on anybody,” Giles said. “I just feel like this is a great year for us.”

Starting with the bottom of the fifth, Skowhegan began to solve Williamson’s offerings. With two out and the bases empty, the Indians drew two walks sandwiched around Bonnie-Jane Aiken’s single to load the bases. Williamson got out of that with a strikeout, but gave up a solo home run to Quirion on a 3-2 pitch with one out in the sixth.

“Coach always tells me, ‘Don’t swing hard. Just ease into it,’ ” Quirion said. “I didn’t think about it. I just hit it.”

In the seventh, the Red Storm showed just how deep their lineup is. Scarborough sent up six straight pinch hitters, and added two more runs on a bases-loaded single by sophomore Brittany Plowman.

Trailing 9-1, the Indians again came to life with two outs and the bases empty. Lyndsi Merrill singled and Obert blooped a check-swing double down the right-field line. Mikayla Toth brought them both home with a single to right, but Williamson ended the day with a strikeout.

“Earlier in the year, this game would have been over in five innings,” Johnson said. “We’d have hung our heads and we’d have lost in five innings and gone home. But today, we had enough character where we battled back. I told the kids, ‘Don’t let this one game ruin what has been a very successful season.’ ”

“We’re the underdogs coming to states and it’s just a good feeling for us,” Quirion said. “We didn’t expect to be here and it was good.”

Matt DiFilippo — 861-9243
mdifilippo@mainetoday.com

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