By Kevin Mills,Staff Writer

When Jeff Pillsbury told his softball team that its regional championship game would be Wednesday, his players first reaction was concern about their chemistry final.

That was good news for the Mt. Abram coach. The last thing he wants is his Roadrunners to do is dwell on playing for the Western C championship.

Pillsbury wants Wednesday’s game to be like any other for his Roadrunners.

“That St. Dom’s game, I’ve never seen my kids more relaxed,” Pillsbury said of Saturday’s 5-2 semifinal win over the Saints. “I hope that carries over. If it does, I like our chances.”

The No. 7 Roadrunners (14-5) are facing No. 4 Telstar (14-2) in the 3 p.m. all-MVC final at Saint Joseph’s College. Though it isn’t surprising to find the Rebels on the brink of a championship, the Roadrunners are entering new territory.

“We’re obviously excited that we’re there,” said Pillsbury. “This is really uncharted waters. None of my seniors have been to the finals in their career in any sport. I think they’re pretty excited.”

The Rebels were last here in 1993, losing to Falmouth. Telstar won the title in 1991. This group of players have been chasing this dream since donning the Rebel uniforms.

“It’s pretty much we’ve worked for all three years that we’ve been playing together,” said Telstar outfielder Kayla Mills. “It’s pretty amazing. We just want to play our hardest.”

The Rebels were the top seed last year, but lost to Sacopee in the semifinals. The year before, the top-ranked Rebels were upset in the quarterfinals by Monmouth. It took a semifinal victory over No. 1 Jay for this opportunity.

“I’ve been playing for three years, and I’ve always wanted this and to have it happen my junior year is awesome,” said shortstop Jessie Farrington.

The two teams met in the regular season, with Telstar posting a 16-2 victory. Farrington tossed a five-hitter and struck out 13, as Telstar built an early 9-0 lead. Jillian Kimball had five hits for the Rebels and Heather Hayes had two of the five hits for Mt. Abram.

The Roadrunners have been in tight battles all year. The only lopsided games were losses to Telstar and Lisbon. Avoiding a similar poor start and staying relaxed is the goal.

“We hope we can get out of the gate early and be playing there with them,” said Pillsbury. “We beat Monmouth and St. Dom’s. I know the kids are pretty relaxed, and I hope they don’t get caught up in what’s at stake.”

The Rebels may be new to the softball title game, but many players have had success in field hockey. They hope that experience gives them an advantage.

“We’ve been pointing at this all year,” said Telstar coach Jim Lunney. “The kids have played in championship games. This is the field hockey team. They can play softball. They’re great kids, and we have an excellent following.”

Though the Rebels were preseason favorites to contend for the regional crown, losses to Jay and Monmouth sank Telstar in the standings. It even put the defending MVC champs out of the conference title game.

“We kind of redeemed ourselves (Saturday),” said Mills. “We didn’t have as good a season this year as we did the past few years, but we won, and we’re going onto the next game.”