Delk finishes what she started in Fairfield’s win over Aviators

Taylor Delk finished off a five-hitter in somewhat unstable fashion Tuesday evening.

The Fairfield High School pitcher took a hard throw off her helmet while running the bases in the bottom of the sixth inning against visiting Sycamore, then worked out of a jam in the top of the seventh to secure a 2-1 victory.

“It was a little blurry. My eyes were kind of filled with tears from getting hit,” said Delk, a junior right-hander. “But I knew I had my defense behind me. I knew they would back me up. We needed a win. We needed to hold them.”

Delk recorded her 11th strikeout to start the seventh. She then walked leadoff hitter Jessica Fehr, who promptly stole second base.

But Delk responded by retiring Hannah Young and Yves Stuntebeck on popups, ending the Greater Miami Conference softball opener for both teams.

“I asked her if she was OK and she used a term you can’t write,” Fairfield coach Brenda Stieger said of Delk. “She was upset, but that’s good because that means she was ready to fight. She’s a very mild, calm, very sweet, even-tempered kid, so to hear her say that, I knew she wanted to go back out there in the seventh.”

The Indians’ Rhiana Hubbard had two hits and snapped a 1-1 deadlock in the bottom of the fifth. She lined a single up the middle to plate Maddie Koger, who reached base on an error.

Erin Burdine added an RBI single to score Koger in the first inning for Fairfield, which opened the season with a split against Kentucky opponents last weekend.

“I think it’s all positive,” Stieger said. “We brought back almost all of our starters, and I think I’ve got good kids on my bench that I can go to if need be. We were pounding the ball Saturday to start the year. And I’ve got two pitchers that I know we can throw.”

Third-year Sycamore coach Sarah Melvin has a positive outlook as well. The Aviators are coming off a 7-17 campaign, but they showed some promise Tuesday in a contest that started their season.

Elizabeth Izworski pitched a six-hitter with four strikeouts, while Fehr and Izworski both had a double and a single at the plate. Fehr’s fifth-inning two-bagger brought pinch-runner Abi Bastin across the plate.

“We left too many people on base,” said Melvin, with her Aviators stranding eight runners. “Kudos to Fairfield. They did what they needed to do to get us out. We might’ve had some nerves coming into it, but we’ll come around.

“We only lost two starters from last year, so we’ve got the experience. We just need to get everybody on the same page. I think we really have the team to beat anybody. We have the potential to be one of those teams that’s going to sneak up on people.”

Delk only had one 1-2-3 inning, and that was the first. She worked in and out of trouble all day in the gray, chilly conditions and said the curveball was her best pitch.

“Getting into trouble is something she’s used to, but she has an uncanny way of getting out of it,” Stieger said. “She doesn’t look like she’s going to overpower you or anything, but she moves the ball well and we mix up her pitches enough that she’s extremely effective.

“She seems to get better as the game progresses. That’s a positive because generally pitchers start to fall down, and that doesn’t happen with her. But give Sycamore credit for battling. No matter what kind of year we’re having, they always play us tough.”

Delk reached base on a fielder’s choice in the sixth. Teammate Jada Taylor followed by delivering a hard-hit ball to Sycamore second baseman Stuntebeck, who threw to shortstop Fehr in an attempt to turn a double play.

Fehr grabbed the ball, touched second base and rifled a throw toward first, drilling Delk’s helmet in the process.

“Right in the middle of my forehead,” Delk said. “I didn’t think it was close enough to slide, so I just kind of slowed down, and it just hit me.”

Stieger immediately wondered if she’d have to bring Lindsey Mitchell in to pitch.

“Then I’m second-guessing myself on why I even had her in there running in the first place,” Stieger said. “But Taylor is one of our best baserunners. It’s tough to take her out.”

The Indians have high hopes for the season after going 15-10 overall and 9-9 in the GMC in 2016. They haven’t won a conference title since 2014.

“The first goal for me has always been to win this league,” Stieger said. “I always like to think we’re in that mix. I’m certainly not leaving us out of any conversation about it. I hope that other people aren’t.

“We’re showing a little growing pains with some new kids, but I feel really good about this season and where we’re going. I always have high expectations for this program.”

Delk said she’s setting the bar high.

“We’re aiming for state this year. That’s my goal,” she said. “We have a lot of hitters. We have a strong defense. We have people that can move around to different positions. We’ve got a great staff and players. I believe that we can do it.”

Both teams resume GMC play Wednesday. Fairfield will host Hamilton, while Sycamore visits Lakota East.

Sycamore 000-010-0—1-5-2

Fairfield 100-010-x—2-6-0

WP – Taylor Delk (2-0); LP — Elizabeth Izworski (0-1). Records: S 0-1, 0-1 GMC; F 2-1, 1-0 GMC

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