By Kevin Mills,Staff Writer

STANDISH – They might have expected mistakes to play a key role. They certainly could have assumed the weather would play a factor. The Buckfield softball team might have even acknowledged that Richmond had the edge in experience in Tuesday’s regional championship game.

One thing the Bucks might not have planned on happening in the Western Maine Class D title game was the drought its offense suffered as Richmond won back-to-back crowns with a 5-1 victory.

“We didn’t get any momentum,” said Buckfield coach Ken Farrington. “The game is about momentum. Sarah (Coonradt) was throwing well enough so we couldn’t hit her. She’s a good pitcher. That’s why they won the state championship last year. We got caught looking. I was disappointed in our batting today.”

Coonradt pitched a two-hitter and stuck out seven. Though the Bucks got a run in the fourth with consecutive hits, it was the only offense Buckfield could muster. It tied the game, but the Bobcats opened the lead when their bats came to life. Richmond had seven hits over the final four innings. Amy Russell had three hits and drove in a run while Kasey Hughes and Nicole Tuttle each had a pair of hits and a RBI.

“That’s the way we’ve been all year,” said Richmond coach Rick Coughlin. “It takes a little while to get going, but once we get girls on, we respond very well. We had some real clutch hitters. We get more relaxed when we got ahead.”

The Bucks only hits came from Kasey Farrington and Lindsey Neal. Coonradt struck out five of the first nine batters she faced. Farrington says his club didn’t adjust well to pitches on the outside corner.

“The ones that hit her today have hit her all year long,” said Farrington. “The ones that have struggled, you’ve got to have confidence that you can hit somebody. If you show any weakness at all, she’ll take advantage of it.”

With the deteriorating conditions, it appeared as though it would be a one- or two-run affair.

“I’ve pitched against them since I was a freshman,” said Coonradt. “I’ve always had a lot of respect for them, and so I know what I need to do against them. I wanted to not let them time me and change speeds and locations.”

Richmond scored in the third when Tracy Leonard’s line drive to center was dropped, allowing Russell to score.

The Bucks (13-5) tied it in the fourth when Farrington doubled in Shayna Shackford.

That was after Richmond had picked off Dee Lavoie at third on a ground ball to third baseman Katie Gray. She faked the throw to first and nailed Lavoie with Hughes covering at third.

“We started doing that at the beginning of the season,” said Coughlin. “We’ve always had that done to us. So we tried it on that play, and it worked.”

The Bucks had a chance to take the lead in the fourth. After Farrington’s double, Neal singled. Farrington rounded third and was headed home when she was given the stop sign at third. She slipped trying to get back and was called out, ending the inning.

“They had her at home, and I tried to stop it,” said Ken Farrington. “I could see they had come up with the ball clean out there.”

Richmond took the lead in the bottom of the fourth. Gray reached on an error, and eventually scored on a Heather Martin grounder. In the fifth, Hughes singled in Russell for a 3-1 lead. The Bobcats added RBI singles by Tuttle and Russell in the sixth.

“Having the experience of being here before does help,” said Farrington. “We don’t have many players that have been to this level. We will attempt to be here next year and try this again.”