By LARRY BOWEN
WACO — Bryan Harvey’s long, successful run through the Little League softball playoffs came to an end Tuesday night, stopped by a hard-hitting bunch of girls from just up the road.
Waco Robinson banged out 16 hits on the way to a 15-5 victory over Harvey in the semifinal round of the Major Girls Southwest Regional at the Bush Little League Center.
It was the second game of the day for both teams. Harvey’s 11- and 12-year-olds won an afternoon elimination game 8-1 over New Mexico state champion Silver City. Robinson lost to Louisiana champion Bossier City 10-6 in the winners’ bracket final.
Robinson, which qualified for the regional by winning the Texas West championship, will get a rematch against Bossier City in the tournament final at 11 a.m. Wednesday. Double-elimination until the final day, the format was changed to provide one championship game, so it can be televised on the Longhorn Network.
The regional champion will earn a spot in the World Series at Portland, Oregon.
Harvey was bidding to become the first softball team from Bryan-College Station to reach the World Series since 2002. The Bryan girls stormed back through the elimination bracket to win the Section I and Texas East tournaments, and they bounced back to win a pair of games after dropping their regional opener to Robinson 5-2 on Sunday.
Robinson hammered away at the idea of another championship run for Harvey, and at the notion that the Waco team would be down after losing to Louisiana 50 minutes before facing Harvey. Robinson took control of the game with four runs in the second and third innings, collecting five hits in each frame.
The Bryan squad took a brief lead with a run in the top of the first, when Jade Chavarria and Faith Fernandez delivered back-to-back singles then pulled off a double steal with Chavarria racing home. Harvey wasted a chance at a big inning in the second, getting a runner picked off third base. Instead of loading the bases with no outs, Harvey failed to score.
Robinson came up with another crucial defensive play in the third. Second baseman Taylor Strain made a nice back-handed stop to turn a potential hit by Julia Rubino into an RBI fielder’s choice. The out proved key as Harvey settled for two runs in the inning that included three walks, a single by Hannah Schnettler and a Robinson error.
Harvey showed its fight with a fifth-inning rally that produced two runs and seemed capable of doing much more damage. Mariya Reyes singled and Rubino doubled to start the uprising. Addie Wright and Nicole Goggin delivered RBI singles as the Bryan girls pulled within 10-5, but Robinson escaped by getting an out on a close play at the plate and a fly ball.
Robinson caused the game to end one inning early because of the run rule by scoring five times in the bottom of the fifth.
Fernandez led the Harvey attack with two hits.
Catcher Wright made several good plays behind the plate to lead the Harvey defense, which also got good work at shortstop from Goggin and Fernandez.
In the win over Silver City, Harvey’s Bre Warren went 3 for 4 and singled home a run during a six-run fourth inning. Schnettler and Wright also had RBI singles in Harvey’s breakaway inning.
Fernandez picked up the win, throwing three shutout innings. Fernandez allowed two hits, getting a strikeout and walking three. Goggin gave up one hit in her three innings of relief and also struck out one.