High school softball: Roy rallies around pitcher to beat Bingham

TAYLORSVILLE — Not many teams start a semifinal win by giving up two home runs.

And while it wasn't what the top-ranked Roy Royals had planned, the 4-2 victory was about a thrilling an outcome as anyone on the team could have imagined against the perennial power.

Wednesday night's semifinal was one of the most anticipated meetings between last year's 4A champ and this year's No. 1-ranked Royals and the defending 5A champions and second-ranked Miners. A lot of the excitement stemmed from the fact that two of the state's best pitchers would battle it out against each other.

It looked like the Miners' offense would get the best of last year's 4A MVP MaCauley Flint when lead off hitter Chalese Fankhauser started the game with a home run. In the third inning, Cearra Clawson smashed another solo home run.

"Cauley hasn't given up two earned runs in a game this year," said Roy head coach Amanda Koford after the Royals earned a spot in Thursday's 5A state championship game at Valley Softball Complex. "Our team needed this to know that she doesn't need to be perfect for us to win."

The way the girls rallied around their pitcher settled Flint and thrilled the coach.

"I was worried about Cauley," said Koford, who is also Flint's aunt. "But I think that's why you have a team. That's true softball. That's a team win. Tori (Almond, Bingham pitcher) didn't have a lot of help tonight and Cauley did."

It was errors that doomed the Miners, as errors were responsible for either a base runner or the advancement of runners five times.

"Errors," said Bingham head coach Mikki Jackson. "They were hitting the ball hard. They did a good job of putting the bat on the ball."

Flint said they were thrilled to meet Bingham in the semifinals of the tournament.

"Yeah, we were nervous," she grinned. "They're Bingham, the two-time 5A state championship."

She said it was her dad, Travis Flint, an assistant coach, and her teammates who calmed her nerves after she gave up the home runs.

"Hopefully it never happens again, every, ever, ever," she said.

Her catcher Jessyca Fulmer, a senior, said catching for Flint is intense.

"We have this connection," she said. "After the home runs, she gets more intense. She's more motivating to the team. We know we can trust her."