By Jack Stringer

In a regional softball matchup between Wheat Ridge and Palmer Ridge, it was the top ranked Farmers who came out on top.

Wheat Ridge won 13-3 after beating Mead 13-1 earlier in the day, putting the Farmers into the next round of state playoffs. They are ranked atop of Colorado’s 4A softball standings and are favorites to win it all and continue Wheat Ridge’s dominance in softball.

The Farmers softball team might not get the biggest crowds, but they continually get unparalleled results. A state championship this year would be their first since 2011 but fourth in the last six years, having won in ’08, ’09, and ’11. No other Wheat Ridge team and almost no other team of any sport in the state can brag about results like that.

What seems like a very impressive start to their state-championship campaign is just business as usual for the Farmers. Getting two ten-run games was their goal going into the day for coach Marty Stricklett and his team. Stricklett went on to say that even though his team got the job done, there is still more to work. “We gotta get our defense more solid and hit a little bit better,” he said.

Jessica Salbato pitched the full game versus the Bears, allowing only three runs. It wasn’t the easiest day for the senior pitcher who had to get out of several jams. Palmer Ridge loaded the bases twice but Salbato and the Farmers defense only allowed one run from both occasions. Salbato also won a 15-pitch battle with Palmer Ridge’s Jennifer Slaughter with an inning-ending strikeout.

Wheat Ridge took a 3-0 lead after the first inning thanks to some Farmers’ bats right from the start and some great defense by junior catcher Mary Sand. The game remained close heading into the sixth inning thanks to hitting from both teams, including a homerun by Palmer Ridge’s Taylor Klee. When the Farmers came up to bat in the bottom of the sixth they ended the game within minutes with an impressive showing of their hitting abilities, highlighted by two hits in the same inning by senior Haley Lorentz and a two-run homerun by sophomore Ann Marie Torres. The seven-run sixth for Wheat Ridge was enough to increase their lead to ten, bringing the game to an end.

After their win, the Farmers’ players and coaches all this next week on their mind for the next round of the state tournament. Wheat Ridge goes in with high expectations and a history of winning, but the hype won’t affect the players according to Stricklett who said, “We will work hard, we will put pressure on them in practice, and we will get better next week.”

The Farmers will put it all out there on Friday Oct. 18 in the next round of the 4A state tournament against Roosevelt at 10 am in Aurora.