Kaitlyn Terry leads Greenway softball to state championship game

Jenna Musselwhite knew what she was looking for. Riseball, screwball, didn’t matter. Just anything middle-in. If it took fouling off 30 pitches to get that, she’d take it.

Turns out she only needed a few foul balls. Then she got what she wanted. An off-speed pitch right over the middle of the plate.

With Kaitlyn Terry representing the winning run on second base, Musselwhite made no mistake, lining the ball into left-center field. “When I knew it was in the gap, I was jumping up and down before I even hit first base,” Musselwhite said. As Musselwhite celebrated, Terry tore towards home. Before even stepping on the plate, she ripped off her helmet with two hands, screaming with joy. When she crossed the dish, she tomahawked the helmet into the dirt, celebrating the moment she had spent four years dreaming of.

Finally, the state’s best player will play on the state’s biggest stage. That’s what Thursday’s 4-3 win over Canyon del Oro ensured, setting up a heavyweight showdown with Salpointe Catholic on Tuesday night in Tuscon. On the line: a 4A title.

“This is something that I've wanted since my freshman year,” Terry said. “Even though it was Covid, I wanted it. I wanted it last year and it just ended bad and we deserve it now.”

Over the past four years, the UCLA commit has established herself as the rare player who might be the best in the state as both a hitter and a pitcher. She entered Thursday with a .706 batting average, 23 home runs and a 0.21 ERA. All three marks are the best in 4A.

What Terry has never gotten is a championship. Her freshman season ended short due to Covid and her sophomore season was foiled by Vista Grande in the quarterfinals. Last year, as the No. 2 seed, Greenway flamed out early, stunned twice by No. 7 seed Mingus Union.

Canyon del Oro didn’t give Terry a chance to expand on her hitting numbers, intentionally walking her three times and pitching around her in the seventh, helping set up Musselwhite’s walk off.

Terry, though, was able to continue her incredible season in the circle. She struck out 15, making a mockery of Canyon del Oro’s gameplan to make things happen via the bunt.

“They were gonna bunt no matter what,” Terry said. “They have a lot of slappers. And I just made sure my team stayed up on them, throwing outside, throwing riseballs so they could foul off the bunts.”

For much of the night, it looked as if Terry would throw her 10th no-hitter of the season. That’s where the game stood in the top of the fifth inning, with Greenway holding a comfortable 3-0 lead.

The rest of the night was far less comfortable. Sydnee Wendel broke up the no-hitter with a line drive single to center field. She came around to score after an error and a safety squeeze.

In the seventh, Wendel made life difficult on Terry again. She blooped a single just over the infield into left field, putting herself on first with one out. After she moved to second on fielder’s indifference, Molly Herman laid a bunt down the third base line.

Fielded well, the play would’ve put Greenway one out from the championship game. Instead, Greenway third baseman Ariel Chandler sailed her throw into right field. When the relay came to catcher Bella Morris, Herman was halfway home — dead to rights at third base. Morris’ throw, though, was also off the mark and skipped into left field, bringing Herman home.

Players spilled out of Canyon del Oro’s dugout, mobbing Herman as she came back to the bench. For much of the night, this had seemed impossible. Scoring once against Terry was a formidable task. Three times? Forget about it.

Then it happened. Greenway’s dream, it seemed, would have to come to reality in an elimination game later Thursday night.

Instead, the Demons rallied. Now, a title is in their reach.

“Oh my gosh, we're so excited,” coach Janna Frandrup said. “That was the best team win. We were a little flat last game but we came back pumping and ready to go.”

This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Kaitlyn Terry leads Greenway softball to 4A championship game