We’ll have to wait another year to have a different champion in the AUSL. The Utah Talons beat the Chicago Bandits 6-1 on Sunday in College Station to claim their second straight AUSL Championship.
“The way they came out the last couple of days, it’s just the belief that they stepped out with,” Utah head coach Cindy Ball-Malone said. “Like, they know that they’ve been through the tough, the good, the bad, like, all the things that you can feel in this game…How they looked at each other in the eyes in our pregame meeting, you could tell, like, it’s time. And we’ve been talking about it. I do think that this is one of our best complete games as a Talon, team, and the best is yet to come for next year, too.”
AUSL Pitcher of the Year Montana Fouts ended her magical season with another brilliant outing. The Bandits did find eight hits against Fouts, but she was at her strongest in those situations. Chicago went 1-for-9 with runners in scoring position.
Chicago finally scored in the seventh. Fouts walked her first batter of the game and Bella Dayton singled to put two on for Skylar Wallace. She lined a single into left field. Fouts responded by setting down AUSL Hitter of the Year Sami Williams and Morgan Zerkle to end the game. It was too little, too late for the Bandits.
The Bandits had another shot in the fifth inning after Dayton led off with a single and Wallace singled as well to put two on for the heart of the Chicago order. Fouts induced a pair of flyouts from Williams and Zerkle to close the frame.
Fouts, who also ended last season’s championship series, went the distance in a complete-game effort. She struck out four while walking one.
“I feel like I’m also trying to grow mentally, and I’m just very proud of the way that,” Fouts said. “I felt I think of is how tough each inning was in between when I was in the dugout trying to basically hype myself up, because it did not feel great today, and all I could do is turn around and think about everybody in the infield..I have genuine love, whether they do it or not. And today, I just looked at each one of them, and it was for them, so I’m very thankful that I got the opportunity to do that today.”
Fouts hasn’t needed much run support this season, and her offense gave it to her early. After a long at-bat by Jayda Coleman, and a near home run that just went foul, the Utah leadoff hitter won the batter against Kat Sandercock with a single. Jadelyn Allchin’s big swing stayed on the fair side of the foul pole for a two-run homer, the first extra-base hit of the championship series.
After allowing the first four batters to reach, Sandercock settled in, keeping the Talons to two runs entering the fourth inning. The bottom of the Utah order started another.
Hannah Flippen dropped a sneaky bunt for a base hit. Aliyah Andrews slapped a ball over to Williams at third, who tried to get Flippen at second, but airmailed the throw into the outfield. Flippen scored from first on the play. Allchin tacked on another run with a two-out double down the line, ending Sandercock’s day.
AUSL Comeback Player of the Year Bri Ellis wanted to add to the lead as well. The Texas native blasted a solo home run over the Davis Diamond scoreboard to extend the lead to five.
“We came out and we hit today. That’s the difference between this year and last year,” Ellis said. “And I feel like when we’re playing the Bandits, it’s always, like, pitchers’ duel, pitchers’ duel, and just trying to get the monkey off our pitcher’s back and give them a break. And we came out and hit today for you, because how many games did you have us on your back? And it’s about time for us to, you know, pick up and show up for her.”
Sahvanna Jaquish added the exclamation point with a solo shot of her own in the seventh.
The top of the Talons’ lineup of Coleman, Allchin, and Jordan Woolery combined for six hits in the win.
Softball season isn’t over. The AUSL’s best will start the All-Star Cup, the classic individual competition on August 8 in Rosemont.
