Talons Withstand Late Push to Take Both Games from Blaze
In Softball, No Lead Is Safe
In the game of softball, no lead is safe. As long as there are outs to be made, anything can happen. That’s something the Talons had to see firsthand today in both games, but especially in game one of the doubleheader.
The Talons jumped out to a 12–1 lead before a 56-minute weather delay stopped the fourth inning. Megan Feraimo, making her first appearance with the Talons, had only allowed one run through three innings. But the Blaze were starting to time her up before the skies opened.
And right after the delay, everything shifted.
Ana Gold scored on a wild pitch. Kayla Kowalik walked. Then Baylee Klingler — one of the day’s biggest standouts — hammered a three-run shot, and in a blink it was 12–5. That was it for Feraimo, and Lauren Derkowski came in to try and stop the bleeding. But the Blaze weren’t finished.
Their momentum stuck. What looked like a run-rule blowout turned into an all-out battle. The Blaze tied it in the sixth before falling 14–12 in the seventh, after a Sydney Romero two-run homer — but the fight they showed was special.
I asked Baylee Klingler after the doubleheader if the weather delay flipped something for them mentally, and she said:
“We didn’t really talk about anything and, like, overdo it. We trust ourselves and then once we came out here, we knew that, like, we had nothing to lose. Like our backs were kind of against the wall, so it’s time to, like, throw some punches and we did that and once we got to the point where like the pressure’s not on us, like we came back and we’re scoring all these runs.”
“It was really cool for us and it’s once again, a testament to how we’re going to work together as a team. So I think I have high hopes for this team and I’m really excited.”
Big Bats Keep the Blaze Close
Klingler ended the day 5-for-9 with a home run, three runs scored, and seven RBIs — all seven coming in game one.
The Blaze got on base every way they could. Aliyah Andrews laid down bunt singles, Aubrey Leach worked walks, and they kept pressure on from top to bottom.
Another huge piece was Danielle Gibson Whorton, who went 4-for-8 with two home runs and seven RBIs across both games. She hits right behind Klingler, making the Blaze’s 3-4 punch one of the most dangerous combos in the AUSL.
Talons Hold Strong Late
Despite the near-collapse, the Talons didn’t panic. After losing all momentum and seeing their 11-run lead disappear, they kept their composure — and found a way to close it out.
I asked Talons head coach Howard Dobson if there was a sense of urgency in the dugout after the lead slipped away or if it stayed business as usual.
“Yeah, I didn’t sweat at all. You couldn’t tell? I didn’t pace or anything as it was going.” (he said jokingly)
Then Dobson turned serious:
“Honestly, the league is so good. So many good players out there, and you know, good hitters — there’s really no lead that’s safe.
And so that being the case, you know, after the rain delay, we lost a little bit of momentum and gave them momentum, and once they started getting momentum, then we needed to have to stop it.”“Hopefully, we’ll learn from that and do a better job of stopping that momentum a little sooner, you know, and not get caught in your mentality trying to just count outs… instead of counting outs, go ahead and keep doing what you’re doing.”
“And then they got a little roll, and fortunate for us, our pitching held on enough to give us enough, and then we had the big two-run home run at the end.
They bent, but didn’t break. It’s kind of like the football mentality of defense — bend but don’t break — and they did.
They got back in it, but then we shut the door when we had to and ended up getting the win. And at the end when it’s all said and done, if it’s one run, one nothing, or if it’s 14–12, as long as you get the win, that’s what matters the most.”
Game Two: Another Close Call
The second game didn’t have the same chaos, but it still got interesting at the end. The Blaze chipped away late and made it a one-run game again, with a Danielle Gibson Whorton two-run shot in the seventh, but the Talons held strong and pulled out a 7–6 win to complete the doubleheader sweep.
Looking Ahead
These are two talented teams. And like Dobson said, with the level of competition in this league, no lead is safe and no game is over until the final out. The Blaze showed incredible grit. They didn’t back down even after trailing by 11 runs. They made the Talons work for both wins.
The Talons, though, never let the Blaze fully take either game. They shut the door when it mattered most.
Sunday’s finale should be another battle.
