THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Saturday, June 3, 1995 TAG: 9506030208
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C6 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY PAUL WHITE, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: VIRGINIA BEACH LENGTH: Medium: 52 lines
Booker T. Washington, on top of its game on the mound, at the plate and in the field, stormed past Salem, 6-0, to capture the school's first Eastern Region softball title Friday at Princess Anne High.
The surprising Bookers, playing with a spark not always in evidence in big games during the regular season, sprayed line drives all over the field against Salem ace Bronwyn Blair, made all the plays in the field and got another sparkling pitching performance from star righthander Donna Self.
``I was really up for the game,'' said Self, who scattered six hits and struck out 10. ``But what really did it was our confidence and our defense. That gave me confidence, and I didn't mind letting them hit it.''
Both teams advance to the Group AAA state tournament. The Bookers (20-3) will play Monacan Tuesday at 5 p.m. at Princess Anne, while Salem (20-3) travels to Mills Godwin.
The Bookers will be making their first appearance in the state tournament.
Bonnie Phelps had three hits and two runs scored, Self had two hits and two runs scored and Sharon McClannan added two RBIs for the Bookers, who pounded out 10 hits for the game.
``We knew Booker T. Washington had never won (the region) before and we wanted this more than anything,'' Phelps said.
Meanwhile, Self, facing a team which had 15 hits in a 15-8 regional semifinal victory over Tabb, turned in arguably her finest performance of the year.
The hard-throwing righthander struck out All-Beach District outfielder and Salem leadoff hitter Michelle Pritchard three times, and Salem's first four hitters were a combined 1 for 12. Self (20-3) also continued to display pinpoint control, as she pitched 22 innings in the Bookers' three regional tournament victories without issuing a walk.
``The story of this game was Donna Self,'' Salem interim coach John McCarthy said. ``She overpowered us.''
Self wasn't the only Booker throwing the ball effectively. Catcher Cheryl Haynes threw out Michelle Coates trying to steal in the second, and a Blair Sherwood-to-McClannan-to-Phelps relay nailed Cheryl Coates trying to stretch a double into a triple in the fourth.
Salem played without coach Larry Bowman and starting outfielder Misty Colebank, who were in France participating in an international AAU basketball tournament. But McCarthy refused to use that or anything else to explain away the whipping the Bookers handed down.
``We played as well as we could,'' he said. ``They just played better.'' by CNB