Falling behind didn’t faze the Great Falls Sharks in their semifinal and championship games of the First Responders Cup softball tournament.
That’s when the girls team switched into an attack mode, rallied to win both contests to capture the 14-under age division of the annual event in Arlington.
On Sept. 8, Great Falls fell behind 4-0 in the first inning of the semifinals, then battled back to win, 7-4, over Rock Gold. The Sharks then rallied from an early 1-0 deficit in the finals to top the Virginia Glory, 5-1. Both games were at Barcroft Park.
Overall, Great Falls, playing in the event for the first time, was 5-0 in the two-day competition, scoring 39 runs.
“We played really well,” Sharks coach Michelle Meighan said. “Before the tournament, we talked about having the mental toughness to bounce back in those situations like being behind. Our pitchers pitched well, we played solid defense and our bats were strong.”
Hitting well was a key for the Sharks. Each of the 14 players had at least one hit in the tournament and 12 had RBI (36 total). The team’s other winning scores were 9-4, 7-2 and 11-8, and its overall batting average in the competition was .434.
The players for the Sharks were Emma Bourne, Madison Bowers, Isabelle Boyd, Madi Carey, Aubrie Fineberg, Mads Fiorenini, Zaina Gilbert, Ali Glantzis, Riley Hulcher, Zoe Matincheck, Kayla McCauslin, Eva Medina, Fiona Romano and Anna Shilinsky. Some were former Great Falls Little League players, as the Sharks have a partnership with that league.
The assistant coaches are Bill Meighan and former Langley High School standout Megan Anderson, who played at Division II Clarion University in Pennsylvania for five seasons, the last this past spring. Bill Meighan, the father of the head coach, frequently makes the drive from Pittsburgh to work with the players on their form and mental approach to hitting. Michelle Meighan said Anderson has been a “tremendous asset” to the program.
“It was an impressive display of teamwork over the entire weekend, with every player making key contributions,” Meighan said about winning the cup. “It was really a special tournament, being a memorial tournament and begin involved in those opening ceremonies.”
Other assistant coaches for the Sharks are David Boyd, Tim Medina and Adrian Romano.
The tournament began on Sept. 11, 2002, to honor the heroism of the Arlington fire and police, who were the first emergency crews at the Pentagon following the deadly terror attack that morning of Sept. 11, 2001. Proceeds raised from the tournament are donated to the Pentagon Disaster Relief Charities.
NOTE: The Sharks have been together as a team since 2019 when many of the players were age 8.
