ROCKVILLE – The thunder rolled and raindrops fell as Blair sophomore pitcher Courtney Wyche stood on the mound Monday, awaiting word from the umpire and head coaches about whether the game would continue.

It was the bottom of the sixth, and Wootton had managed to avoid a Blazer shutout by scoring four runs in quick succession. However, as the sky darkened and the thunder rumbled in the distance, the umpire made the decision to call the game, and Blair escaped with a 9-4 victory.

“The momentum turned, and they had all the momentum,” said Blair head coach Louis Hoelman. “I don’t know what would have happened if the game would have continued. They’re a good team, and they were getting hot now. I’m real happy that we got it in early and we had a little bit of room for error there.”

The Sherwood Warriors girls’ softball team (9-1) led by fourth-year head coach Ashley Barber-Strunk lost to the Northwest Jaguars, 9-5, ending an epic five-season-plus 105-game win streak. 

A streak like this warrants review. It was just a high school streak even though historically it’s the third longest streak ever nationwide for high school girls’ softball. It was broken at the beginning of a new season, with the Warriors fielding a new squad and starting five freshmen.

That said, how does a Montgomery County Public Schools program go undefeated for most of the decade? How does an MCPS program field such a consistent and commanding winner?

Blazers overpower Richard Montgomery with 10 runs to win sixth

Blair pitcher Courtney Wyche connects solidly with the ball, putting it over the right field fence for a home run. PHOTO BY DAVID WOLFE  

SILVER SPRING – The Blair varsity softball team extended its undefeated streak to 6-0 Thursday after dismantling the visiting Richard Montgomery Rockets, 10-2.

The Rockets (1-3) wasted no time getting on the board as senior second baseman Tatiana Davidson ran over the home plate at the top of the first.

The rest of the evening, however, belonged to the Blazers.

Stubborn Northwest ends Sherwood’s 105 game softball winning streak

Ecstatic Northwest players embrace each other after dethroning Sherwood - a team that had established a record setting 105 game win streak.   PHOTO BY MARK POETKER  

SANDY SPRING—A giant has fallen, as the Northwest Jaguars varsity girls softball team (3-0) slayed the Sherwood Warriors (2-1) and their 105-game winning streak on Saturday afternoon at Sherwood High School, 9-5.

“Oh my God,” said Jaguars head coach Mike Horton in his postgame speech to his team. “You just have just turned the MoCo softball world on its head. It’s on its head. Their streak is over…What a day, girls. I will remember this for the rest of my life.”

SANDY SPRING – Kelly Bouma, Marisa Mancini and McKenzie Bina don’t know what it feels like to lose a high school softball game.

The three seniors have played on Sherwood’s varsity squad since they were freshmen. The Warriors have won five state championships in as many years; Bina, Bouma and Mancini have been there for four of them.

Sherwood softball’s undefeated streak began the year before the three girls started high school. Captains and best friends Bouma and Bina said that their softball careers were heavily influenced by the leadership of the upperclassmen.

“Kelly and I looked up to the captains from previous years to see how they led the team,” said Bina.

This spring the Sherwood softball team extended its winning streak to 103 consecutive games thanks to the efforts of talented seniors such as Jaime Schmier, McKenzie Bina, Kelly Bouma and others but the foundation was laid a few years ago.

The Sherwood softball dynasty began in 2012 when the Warriors captured the first of their string of five consecutive state championships.

However, Pat Flanagan, who took over the program in 1996, recalled the last time Sherwood lost a game. During the spring of 2011, the Warriors fell to Blair in the postseason.

“We lost to my good friend Louie Hoelman,” said Flanagan. “That was [former Sherwood pitcher Meggie] Dejter’s freshman year.”

Sherwood girls claim fifth state title in as many years

The Sherwood softball team celebrates as Chopticon junior Lily Sager walks past, following Sherwood's fifth straight state title. PHOTO BY DAVID WOLFE

COLLEGE PARK – As the Sherwood varsity softball team gathered on the pitch for the post state championship game photo Friday at Maryland Softball Stadium, all the players faced the camera except one.

Senior outfielder Madi Marks had her back to the photographer, displaying her jersey number. Marks wears number five.

For Sherwood, the number five held an extra special meaning.

The undefeated Warriors claimed their fifth state championship crown in five years with their 7-2 victory over Chopticon from St. Mary’s County. Friday’s game marked Sherwood’s tenth appearance in a state title game. The Braves (19-4) hadn’t participated in the state finals since 1985.

Blair's Karylena Cruz celebrates a two run blast that helped seal the deal as Blair shutout Clarksburg 3-0 to take the regional crown. PHOTO BY DAVID WOLFE

SILVER SPRING – Blair senior pitcher Karylena Cruz shined at the plate and on the diamond in the Blazers’ 3-0 home victory Friday over Clarksburg.

Cruz, who earned the win, also belted a two-run home run in the bottom of the sixth inning to catapult the Blazers to the 4A West Region title for the second year in a row.

Blair celebrates as they win against B-CC in the opening rounds of the Maryland 4A Softball Championship series. PHOTO BY JACQUI SOUTH

SILVER SPRING – Monday’s varsity softball playoff game between Blair and Bethesda – Chevy Chase had all the qualities of a game in a sports movie: multiple lead changes, two tremendous comebacks, a narrow defeat, an unlikely victory.

Blair freshman pitcher and University of Maryland commit Courtney Wyche came up to bat at the bottom of the seventh inning. The Blazers had blown a 4-3 lead at the top of the seventh, only to string four runs together a few minutes later.

The score was tied 8-8 as Wyche slid the tip of her bat across the plate. The bases were loaded. Wyche took aim and slammed the ball across the field.

Senior Mildred Devereux leaped from third base and ran home. The Blazers pulled off a 9-8 victory, a victory that seemed unlikely when they trailed the Barons twice.

Jamie Schmier. PHOTO BY MARK POETKER

SANDY SPRING-Sherwood kept its unbeaten streak Monday afternoon when it beat one of its closest rivals, Blake, 12-0, keeping them scoreless through five dominating innings.

Sherwood is now 15-0 overall, while Blake drops to 14-4.