Indy Dreams ’03 Splashes Its Way to Victory in Summer Nationals Opener

By Jason Hanes

Playing most of the game in a driving rainstorm, Indy Dreams ’03 adapted to the conditions and pulled away for an 18-3 victory over Carolina Comets – Wilkes in 18U action at the Myrtle Beach Summer Nationals Wednesday.

“You just do the best you can,” said Indy Dreams head coach Holli Streeval. “Our pitchers dealt with the same conditions theirs did, but we just had a little bit more control over our pitches. There’s nothing you can really do in the rain except pray your hand dries out enough between pitches.”

“You just have to get used to it,” said Hailey Gotshall who allowed one unearned run in two innings of action with three walks and three strikeouts. “You’ve got to do your best to hit your spots as well as you can.”

Patience at the plate helped Indy Dreams get the offense going. Trailing 2-1 entering the bottom of the second, Indy Dreams would score nine times to take control of the game by the scruff of the neck. “We did a great job of not chasing pitches,” coach Streeval said. “We always go with, ‘It’s your pitch until it’s not.’ Of course, we had some walks, but we took advantage when we had the bases loaded.”

Gotshall would have perhaps the biggest blow of the nine-run frame when she doubled to left-center on a 1-0 pitch with the bases loaded. The three-run double would give her side a 7-2 lead. “I was looking for my pitch and let it get in deep,” Gotshall said. “I didn’t chase and I just had good timing.”

The big inning and the rhythm of the offense allowed Gotshall to relax in the circle when she went out for her two innings of relief. “It [helped] tremendously,” she said. “I could just focus on getting the batters and not worry about a run scoring.”

Gotshall would finish with a team-best five RBI with Corin Dammeier adding three runs driven in and two each from Hailey Cripe (Univ. of Kansas commit) and Hailee Howe (Ave Maria).

With one game under their belts, Indy Dreams ’03 can now focus on getting a good seed heading towards bracket play. “It’s always good to start with a win,” said coach Streeval. “You always wish the conditions were better, but if we had started off with a loss knowing we were handcuffed by the rain would have been very tough. Hopefully, we can gain momentum from this and hopefully the conditions will get better.”