The adage goes that in softball, pitching and defense wins games. As evidenced by Magnolia and Tomball’s trip to the state tournament in Austin last weekend, they can also cost teams games, but sometimes not in the usual sense.

Following remarkable seasons, both Tomball and Magnolia fell just short of their ultimate goals this year when they endured heart-breaking losses at the University of Texas’ McCombs field. What makes the losses even more frustrating, however, is that they came in fashions very much unlike the type of play the Lady Cougars and Lady Bulldogs have displayed this season.

After winning the state semi-final game over New Braunfels Canyon 2-0 on June 3 to earn a trip to the state title game, the Lady Bulldogs were shut out and no-hit by Waco Midway’s Kermetria Ward in a 1-0 Midway victory in the state championship game.

After seven innings of scoreless ball, the Lady Bulldogs committed two errors in the eighth inning to put a pair of Midway runners on base, one of whom scored the title-winning run, putting an end to Magnolia’s season.

The Lady Bulldogs were one win away from their first state title since 1999. Magnolia finishes the season with a 32-13 record. Their 2010 postseason was as dominant as any team in the playoffs, defeating Buda Hays, Barbers Hill, Nederland, Santa Fe, Angleton and Canyon.

Meanwhile, the loss by the Lady Cougars was more bizarre. Facing Austin Bowie in the state semi-finals, Tomball was aiming for their first state title in school history after coming up short in four previous trips.

However, in the state semi-final game against Austin Bowie, Tomball’s ace, Shelby Lancaster, was called for 16 illegal pitches by the third base umpire. Lancaster was called for illegally replanting her pivot foot in the circle in the illegal pitches. Each call resulted in all Bowie base runners advancing one base.

The pitches cost Tomball early and often, with Bowie taking a 3-0 lead by the third inning. Michelle Quinn replaced Lancaster in the fourth, but the first batter she face hit a two-run home run to give Bowie a 5-0 lead, a nearly insurmountable deficit in softball, especially at the state level.

Bowie would add four more runs while Tomball could only manage to plate one on the way to a 9-1 loss to end the Lady Cougars’ season. They finish 2010 with a 30-10 overall record.

On their way to the state tournament, Tomball defeated Conroe, Cedar Park, Stony Point, Mesquite Horn and Rowlett.

This was the Lady Cougars’ fifth trip to the state tournament. Tomball previously appeared in 1993, 1994, 2004 and 2005.

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