In Connecticut, the Class LL high school state softball championship took place Saturday night and like many of the 2014 state high school finals was a game that people will long remember.

Southington High had been ranked No. 1 in the state all year and was No. 43 nationally in the latest FAB 50 rankings.

But a second straight state championship and an undefeated season wouldn’t come easily.

The Lady Knights were pushed into extra innings—way into extra innings—against a competitive Amity team led by sophomore pitcher Katie Koshes, who scattered six hits over 15 innings with an eye-opening 21 strikeouts.

But that one hit allowed was the game-winner, a walk-off home run in the bottom of the 15^th by senior catcher Rachel Dube who, ironically, was thinking of bunting to get on base prior to her game-winning blast.

“They were catching everything, so when push comes to shove, we were just trying to get someone on,” Dube told GameTimeCT.com about her intentions to bunt, even with an 0-2 count.

“We were just trying to put a score on the board, so you had to do what you had to do. I had two strikes on me, and I knew I had to swing, but I was actually thinking about bunting on that hit. But then I said, ‘Just go for it.’”

Here’s the video of the game winning homer:

 

On the Southington side, junior pitcher Kendra Friedt was as equally tough in the circle.  She allowed eight hits, but no walks and recorded 16 Ks herself.

Dube and Friedt were named the championship game MVPs and helped the Lady Knights finish 24-0 and extend the team’s winning stream to 46 games.

Up to the nail-biter of a finale, Southington had been a steam-roller this year outscoring their opponents 300-15 and only allowing one run (unearned) during the entire state tournament.

The defending state champs weren’t expected to be as strong as last season after returning only four starters and losing pitcher Jordyn Moquin, the Hartford Courant 2013 Player of the Year, to graduation.

However Friedt emerged as a more-than-capable replacement and set a school season record with 256 strikeouts.  She finished the season a perfect 24-0 and launched herself into All-American consideration.

One of the strengths for the Lady Knights under first-year head coach Davina Hernandez is their success and aggressive on the bases.  Last year, Southington had 48 bases, but junior infielder Lauren Zazzaro set another school record with 29 steals by herself.

The championship gives Southington 16 softball state titles and they should threaten for another one in 2015 as Friedt and five other starters return.

Don’t be surprised if it’s another Southington vs. Amity match-up, either.  Both teams return their standout underclass pitchers and have a history of facing each other when it counts:  they’ve placed seven times in the finals with Southington holding a 4-3 record over the Spartans.