'That was a shot': Hillsdale beats Keystone on Dalton's blast, tops Tallmadge in extras

JEROMESVILLE — Vision is a powerful thing.

Case in point, Hillsdale senior Belle Dalton's solo shot into the wind and perfectly laced down the left field line for the go-ahead run in a thrilling 7-6 win over Keystone.

"Beforehand I was kind of like, 'Man, it would be kind of cool to get a home run right now,' and I kind of envisioned it," said Dalton.

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It was just the start of a big day for Hillsdale, who went on to beat defending state champion Tallmadge 7-6 in eight innings on a Mollie Goon RBI single in the eighth.

After climbing into the box with two outs in the bottom of the sixth and the score tied 6-6, Dalton unleashed a rocket that will be remembered.

"I saw that pitch coming and it was just a little outside, right on the barrel and I knew right off the bat, it was going somewhere," said Dalton. "I was just scared it was going to go foul and I was just like, 'Please stay in.'"

"That was a shot," Hillsdale freshman Jordyn Fickes said.

Dalton jogged around third giving her coach Hannah Moore a big high-five before waltzing to home plate.

"I was just so excited," the Falcons catcher said. "We couldn't have done it without Jordyn's big hit. Without her hit, we wouldn't have had those tying runs, but I was just like, 'I did that, I mean, I just did that.' I couldn't have done without my team, but I was just excited about it."

Setting up the big moment for the senior was the swat of Jordyn Fickes and the right arms of Kennedy Fickes and Keira Filius. Jordyn came to the plate two batters ahead of Dalton in the sixth inning and her team trailing 6-3 with two runners on. She turned a 1-1 pitch and deposited it over the left field fence to even the score at 6-all as she drove in both Ally Morgan (walk) and Jacey Sermulis (infield single).

"It was a 1-1 count, I fouled the one off before that and I was looking for a pitch to drive," said the freshman. "It was actually a high pitch that I normally don't swing at, and I was just looking to hit it hard somewhere and score some runs."

She ended up belting a shot that cleared the left field fence even as she worried if it would due to the wind coming in.

"I wasn't exactly sure due to the wind coming in," she said, "Once it did go over, it felt really good."

Pitching in easily her biggest game to date and having only worked 5⅔ innings on the season, Kennedy Fickes delivered a gem. Working six solid innings, Kennedy, a sophomore, survived the first two frames that saw Keystone get to her for four runs.

"I knew that Keystone was a good hitting team and that they would hit, and that's what they did," said Kennedy. "I was able to keep pitching, I bounced back after those first couple innings and got the win, thanks to these two (Belle Dalton and Jordyn Fickes)."

As for the key to her success in the latter frames?

"It was just trusting my pitches a lot more, especially my changeup and I had that one working pretty well," she said. "It was definitely nerve-racking today, but I can always count on my team, and I know they will always be there for me. Belle is amazing behind the plate, she will always get everything and today, she had a lot of blocks and I know that I can always trust her."

The win against a state power like Keystone — a five-time state champion — is a big one for a Hillsdale team with big aspirations.

"It was a big team win from one to really 12 in our lineup," said Moore. "Everyone played a part today in the win and that is what we always strive for. Everyone has a big role on this team, they all do their part, we never gave up and I feel like that's what we did today. That's Hillsdale softball and I am super proud of them for keeping that."

As for her youth stepping up big and her arms, Moore couldn't have been happier.

"The young ones have some really good role models in our seniors, and it's been a good learning experience for them," she said. "This game is just one of those testaments that we can do it, ones that we just have to remind ourselves, that we're a good team and this is a confidence booster for us today.

"Kennedy had a rocky start, but she settled in, hit her spots, moved the ball and kept them off balance. Thats what we needed her to do and that's what she did. She threw a great six innings, our defense played well behind her, Keira (Filius) came in to close and did a great job. I am proud of both of our pitchers and looking forward to the next game."

All in all for the Falcons, it was a game to build off of as they look to navigate the rest of their schedule.

"It just lets us know that we can do it," said Dalton. "We were down the whole game, we fought back and it's a good motivation to keep going."

This article originally appeared on The Daily Record: Softball: Hillsdale gets big wins over Keystone, Tallmadge