Cheverus softball players Anna Kennedy-Jensen, left, and Kelsey Cassidy celebrate after the Stags beat Windham in the Class A South final on June 11 in Gorham. The epic showdown is the Varsity Maine Girls’ Game of the Year. Shawn Patrick Ouellette/Staff Photographer

There was no way for the game to live up to expectations. Or so it seemed.

The much-anticipated Cheverus-Windham softball showdown for the Class A South title featured the state’s two best teams. It also featured the two most dominant pitchers in Maine high school softball: Brooke Gerry at Windham and Addison DeRoche at Cheverus. The stakes were high, and the hype was higher.

And then, somehow, the game surpassed expectations. No one in attendance will soon forget what played out June 11 at the University of Southern Maine’s Husky Softball Field.

Cheverus and Windham battled for 10 innings before the Stags ended the Eagles’ championship reign with a 2-0 victory.

In a year with several thrilling games in girls’ sports, this regional final showdown between softball powerhouses is our choice as the 2023-24 Varsity Maine Girls’ Game of the Year.

At the heart of the battle was the pitchers’ duel, as Gerry, a senior, and DeRoche, a freshman, matched each other pitch for pitch amidst rising pressure. Both pitchers came in with sparkling resumes – Gerry was a two-time Gatorade Maine Player of the Year and 2023 Varsity Maine Player of the Year; DeRoche was a travel ball phenom coming off a historically dominant regular season. By night’s end, both pitchers had risen to a higher level.

DeRoche finished with 23 strikeouts, while Gerry totaled 21. DeRoche gave up two hits, Gerry allowed four. DeRoche threw 145 pitches, Gerry twirled 163.

“I knew how special it was. I tried to enjoy every minute,” Cheverus Coach John Eisenhart said. “What made it so much fun was just how good Windham was, and watching our kids and the way they competed was just phenomenal.”

It all played out in front of a crowd that, knowing the talent on display, turned out to the USM diamond in droves. Fans bought 1,000 tickets to the day’s slate of games – the C South final took place right before – and few had left by the start of the nightcap. They filled the seats, stuffed the standing areas, sat in aisles and lined the fence, finding any spot where they could catch a glimpse of the action.

Windham’s Brooke Gerry delivers a pitch during the Class A South final. Shawn Patrick Ouellette/Staff Photographer

“It’s electric,” DeRoche said after the game. “I didn’t get to look at the crowd that much, but when I did, there were a lot of people there. … It’s really cool to see how much attention (was paid) to this game. It’s a big game, but it’s also growing the sport for Maine.”

The pitchers were in control early, and then resilient later. In the sixth, Gerry surrendered hits to Kelsey Cassidy and Hailey Lamontagne after hitting Delia Tremble with a pitch. With the bases loaded, Gerry struck out two batters to escape trouble. In the ninth, Windham’s Addie Caiazzo got into scoring position on a hit by pitch and passed ball, but DeRoche struck out the next batter and then got Jaydn Kimball to fly out to Lamontagne in deep center.

Cheverus and Windham each had base runners in four of the first nine innings. Great pitching and timely defense kept them off the board.

“After, I think, the ninth inning, we were all like ‘I can’t believe this game’s still going on,'” Cheverus junior first baseman Ashley Connor said. “Before that, we were locked in, we were yelling. It was kind of chaotic.”

Finally, in the 10th, Cheverus broke through with the automatic runner rule in effect. Anna Kennedy-Jensen start the 10th on second base, and after Gerry got back-to-back strikeouts, Tremble lofted a fly to shallow right that fell for an RBI single. Tremble advanced to second on the play, and Cassidy followed with a single up the middle that plated Tremble to make it 2-0.

It was plenty of support for DeRoche, who struck out three straight batters to end the classic.

“It’s amazing, it’s a nail-biter. It can get a little nerve-wracking when you’re in it, but just looking outside of it, even if we had lost, it still would have been a great game, and a great game for Maine softball,” DeRoche said. “I’m glad that the crowd enjoyed it, and that we came out on top.”