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Grain Valley, MO —
Brooklynne Simbeck tried to block out the craziness going on in the stands at Trenton High School.
The home team was trailing 2-1 in the bottom of the seventh inning of the Class 3 state quarterfinal game Monday and the Grain Valley ace was an out away from the Eagles’ first-ever trip to the final four.
“It was so noisy,” Simbeck said. “You couldn’t hear anything. It was hard to keep calm, but I knew I had to get one out and we were going to state.”
Added catcher Sydney Fry, one of Simbeck’s longtime teammates and best friends: “I knew she was going to get out of the jam. We just went after them – went after them hard.”
Simbeck started the seventh with a strikeout, then walked back-to-back batters. A pop-out to Fry brought the Eagles one out closer to that elusive trip to state, then Simbeck walked the bases loaded.
Coach Jim Oliver sat on a bucket of balls in the corner of the visitors dugout and took in the dramatic scene.
“It was incredible,” Oliver said. “My hair is kind of gray, but it’s a lot grayer now. And I don’t have any fingernails, but I knew that Brooklynne was going to get that final out. We all knew it.”
And she did.
Simbeck struck out Trenton’s No. 3 hitter, Scotlin Hurley, to end the game and start the celebration.
“I quietly did my little Spiderman dance in the corner of the dugout,” Oliver joked, “and watched the girls celebrate out on the mound. It was pretty special watching them all celebrate. I told them that if we won to keep it classy. And they did, but you could tell how happy they were.
“So was I.”
Simbeck has quietly developed into one of the premier pitchers in Eastern Jackson County and has teamed with Lexie Worden to give the Eagles a 1-2 pitching punch that continues to knock out the opposition.
“Lexie and Brooklynne were both all-district,” Oliver said. “As a coach, you feel confident going into any game because you have two quality pitchers. They are No. 1 and No. 1A.”
When Simbeck recorded the final out of the seventh inning, she took in the wild scene on the field.
“It was still noisy and crazy,” Simbeck said, “except now, it was our fans and my teammates being noisy and crazy. It was the best feeling. I don’t know how to explain it, you just had to witness it to know what I’m talking about. None of us will ever forget it.”
Brooklynne Simbeck tried to block out the craziness going on in the stands at Trenton High School.
The home team was trailing 2-1 in the bottom of the seventh inning of the Class 3 state quarterfinal game Monday and the Grain Valley ace was an out away from the Eagles’ first-ever trip to the final four.
“It was so noisy,” Simbeck said. “You couldn’t hear anything. It was hard to keep calm, but I knew I had to get one out and we were going to state.”
Added catcher Sydney Fry, one of Simbeck’s longtime teammates and best friends: “I knew she was going to get out of the jam. We just went after them – went after them hard.”
Simbeck started the seventh with a strikeout, then walked back-to-back batters. A pop-out to Fry brought the Eagles one out closer to that elusive trip to state, then Simbeck walked the bases loaded.
Coach Jim Oliver sat on a bucket of balls in the corner of the visitors dugout and took in the dramatic scene.
“It was incredible,” Oliver said. “My hair is kind of gray, but it’s a lot grayer now. And I don’t have any fingernails, but I knew that Brooklynne was going to get that final out. We all knew it.”
And she did.
Simbeck struck out Trenton’s No. 3 hitter, Scotlin Hurley, to end the game and start the celebration.
“I quietly did my little Spiderman dance in the corner of the dugout,” Oliver joked, “and watched the girls celebrate out on the mound. It was pretty special watching them all celebrate. I told them that if we won to keep it classy. And they did, but you could tell how happy they were.
“So was I.”
Simbeck has quietly developed into one of the premier pitchers in Eastern Jackson County and has teamed with Lexie Worden to give the Eagles a 1-2 pitching punch that continues to knock out the opposition.
“Lexie and Brooklynne were both all-district,” Oliver said. “As a coach, you feel confident going into any game because you have two quality pitchers. They are No. 1 and No. 1A.”
When Simbeck recorded the final out of the seventh inning, she took in the wild scene on the field.
“It was still noisy and crazy,” Simbeck said, “except now, it was our fans and my teammates being noisy and crazy. It was the best feeling. I don’t know how to explain it, you just had to witness it to know what I’m talking about. None of us will ever forget it.”
And Oliver will never forget the moment, or the bus ride back to Grain Valley.
“This is a special group of girls,” the veteran coach said. “They’re at the point now where they’re running practice on their own. They don’t even need me. It’s like that comment from the Blue Springs coach (Roger Lower) when his team won state a few years ago. He said he puts their names on the lineup card and keeps out of their way and then goes and shakes the other team’s hands after a win.
“The girls are getting it done, and I’m enjoying every minute of it.”
So are they.
“This is just the greatest,” Fry said. “Brooklynne and I have played together for a long time and I know everything about her. We have faith and confidence in each other and I think it showed against Trenton.”
Simbeck also swung a hot bat, knocking in the first run with an RBI double in the fourth inning. Freshman Lena Sanders then knocked in Simbeck with the eventual game winner.
“When you have a freshman knock in the winning run in a state quarterfinal game, you feel pretty good about the future of the program,” Oliver said. “We have nine seniors on this year’s team, and they’re going to state. We’re playing with a lot of confidence right now, so it’s going to be interesting to see what happens.”
The 24-6 Eagles play 25-2 Festus in the state semifinals at 1 p.m. Friday at Killian Softball Complex in Springfield.
