Camdyn Johnson of Morse follows through on a pitch during Wednesday’s game against Medomak Valley in Bath. Eli Canfield/The Times Record
BATH — Camdyn Johnson knew it wasn’t going to be easy on Wednesday. After all, the last time the Morse softball team played Medomak Valley came just over two weeks ago — in a game that was decided in extra innings.
The Shipbuilders on that affair, and they took the rematch Wednesday, too. And this one didn’t need extras, thanks to another brilliant performance from Johnson, who helped carry Morse to a 4-1 victory.
“You have to make sure your confidence level remains high, without it bad things can happen,” said the Morse junior pitcher, who struck out 15 and allowed just two hits on one unearned run. “Going up there and knowing the abilities I have seems to calm me down and let me just play my game.”
It was a much better outing for Johnson against the Panthers (10-3), after she gave up four runs in a 6-4 Shipbuilders (8-4) extra inning victory on May 10.
“I wouldn’t say it was easier, but it was sort of calming going up against them (Medomak) a second time,” said Johnson. “Knowing I could go up and keep them off balance and mess with their timing was a big factor for me today (Wednesday).”
Having a dominant pitcher in the circle like Johnson remains a luxury for the Shipbuilders.
“It’s a huge advantage for us, we know we’re always going to be in the game with Cam on the mound and have a great defense backing her up,” said Morse head coach Wilfred Laffley. “We seem to have a different level of confidence when she’s out there leading us, it’s just a blessing to have a pitcher like her.”
Michaela Patterson of Morse sprints out of the batter box after hitting a ground ball back to the pitcher during Wednesday’s game against Medomak Valley in Bath. Eli Canfield/The Times Record
“What we’ve talked about is just getting to five or six runs and we should be good,” added Laffley. “We’ve really been trying to improve our bats for the last few days so that we can take some of that pressure off her.”
After Aly Creamer of Medomak Valley smacked a single to right field and came all the way around to score on a couple of Morse throwing errors, Johnson put it in cruise control and retired the next 10 Panther hitters.
“You have to live batter to batter, pitch to pitch, and just move on from the last play,” said Johnson. “You can’t let things get to you, especially when they happen so early like they did today.”
The Shipbuilders scored all four of their runs in the first inning, but could’ve had more.
“We had several opportunities with runners on base to blow this thing open,” he said. “That’s what our biggest struggle has been, timely hitting, and we’re fortunate that it didn’t end up hurting us here.”
Madi Boynton of Medomak Valley winds up to pitch during Wednesday’s game against Morse in Bath. Eli Canfield/The Times Record
After the first two Morse hitters were retired, the Shipbuilders loaded the bases for Haley Johnson, who came through with a two-run single. Anna Franz would drive in the next two Shipbuilders runs after she reached on error to make it a 4-1 game.
“Having those runs in the first was all I needed,” said Johnson. “It’s a whole different type of game when you’re pitching with the lead, it makes me much more relaxed out there.”
The Shipbuilders are heating up at the right time, winning their fourth straight game and sixth of their last eight.
“Momentum is the name of the game this time of year,” said Laffley. “We just want to keep this up and go into the playoffs with confidence and that important momentum.”
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