After a season during which the Dirigo softball team had to dig deep and rebound from adveristy, the Cougars had to weather more than rain in their Western C championship game at Bailey Field at St. Joseph’s College.

With Sacopee Valley threatening just about every inning early on, it was like an episode of Survivor on a softball field.

But the Cougars outlasted the Hawks for a 2-1 victory.

“There were a few points early on in this game where I had flashbacks to earlier in the season when the defensive  game was going but our offense wasn’t,” Dirigo coach Sara Thurston said.

As Dirigo built momentum with its defensive stops, the Cougars found their offense in the fifth with a pair of runs. Those held up as the team won its first regional softball title. They will play in the Saturday’s Class C state championship game at 11 a.m. against Eastern Maine champion Bucksport.

“It’s still not sinking in,” senior pitcher Alyssa Wade said. “It might sink in more (Wednesday) when we have to go to practice. Right now, it’s amazing.”

Wade and Natalie Bolduc each had RBI hits in the fifth. That erased the early Sacopee lead. It was the Dirigo defense that kept the Cougars within reach for much of the game. The Hawks stranded nine players and had three straight innings in which two runners were left in scoring position.

“Defensively, that’s what we’ve been able to do most all of the year,” said Thurston.

Dirigo got a number of outstanding defensive plays. Mariah Larsen saved a run with a mighty throw from the fence that kept a runner from scoring. Gretchen Bradbury was superb  at third and even teamed up with catcher Alyssa Charity to nail a run at the plate. Ambyr Wilson made some fabulous stretches at first. Tasha DeRoche at short and Bolduc at second made for a solid infield.

“I have a lot of faith in my defense,” said Wade, who scattered eight hits.

Sacopee Valley (8-11) took the 1-0 lead in the first when  Chelsey Burnell singled and scored on a two-out single by Shelly Pellegrino.

The Cougars (13-6) only had one other hit through the first four. Meanwhile, the Hawks were threatening each inning only to come up empty. In the  third, fourth and fifth innings, the Hawks totalled five hits and six left on base.

The fifth might have been the most crucial. Melissa Mayhew had a double that could have scored McKenzie Ross. An outstanding throw by Larsen from the fence in center held her at third.  A play by  Bradbury at third then got the second out at the plate, when Charity tagged out Ross. A ground out to Wade ended the inning.

In the bottom of the inning, Dirigo’s bats came to life. Gretchen Bradbury led off the inning with a single and advanced on a passed ball.

“She hasn’t had a lot of key hits this year,” said Thurston. “Turning it around and getting that line drive right up the middle was unbelievable.”

Sacopee pitcher Ashley Pingree got a pair of outs and went to a full count on Wade. She roped a low pitch to the gap in left-center to tie it.

“I was thinking that I better not miss it, I better not strike out” said Wade. “I just knew there was a runner in scoring position. So I had to try to hit it as hard as I could.”

Bolduc followed and lined a single that put the Cougars in the lead.

“All season, I haven’t been the best hitter but I’ve been consistent,” said Bolduc. “I felt confident. So I just knew I had to relax and not think about the situation and hit like I did all season.

Sacopee was put down in order in the sixth, thanks to an outstanding stretch by Wilson that got the first out. In the seventh, the Hawks got a lead-off single by Miranda Schaubhut. She was sacrificed to second. Burnell grounded out to third. After a walk to Mayhew, Pellegrino hit it back to Wade for the final out.

“We’ve all come together,” said Bolduc. “The beginning was really rough. Then we came together and believed in ourselves. We knew all along we could make it this far, and we did.”

Dirigo started the year 1-4 and lost Wade to an injury. Their resolve helped them persevere and ultimately make history.

“They deserve it completely,” said Thurston. “They came in and worked hard. They made changed and kept positive. What more could you ask from your team when they put so much into it.”

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