No-Hitter Puts Broad Run Two Wins From Title

Johnson Shines Behind the Plate and With the Bat

By Katie Carrera

Wednesday, June 4, 2008

As she scrambled to retrieve a pop fly in the fourth inning, Broad Run catcher Haley Johnson thought back two years to when she was a freshman playing in the Virginia AA state quarterfinals.

There was a hit just like the one floating above her head but, she remembered, the Spartans didn't win that game. Johnson threw off her catcher's mask, looked up and thought: "Oh my gosh. Where's the ball?"

She dived into the infield dirt, muddy from a 45-minute rain delay. She somersaulted on the ground, hoping she had spotted the ball correctly, and when Johnson flipped over, the ball was nestled safely in her glove.

"It was kind of funny," Johnson said. "When I rolled over, there was a bit of a delayed reaction before anyone saw it and cheered."

Acrobatics weren't the only thing the junior contributed to the Spartans' 55th straight win in a 3-0 no-hit victory over New Kent in Tuesday's Virginia AA quarterfinal game. Johnson got the Broad Run offense started in the second inning with the first hit of the game — a single to shallow left field. After advancing on a passed ball, she soon scored the Spartans' first run on a double down the first-base line by star pitcher Caitlyn Delahaba.

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Broad Run vs. New Kent

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In the 7th inning of Broad Run's state quarterfinal game against New Kent, Head Coach Ed Steele talks with his team before they take the field for the last inning. (Tracy A. Woodward)

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The Broad Run girls' softball team celebrates its 3-0 victory over New Kent, winning the Virginia State Softball Quarter Finals. (Tracy A. Woodward)

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In the bottom of the 5th inning, Broad Run's Ashley Kramer rounds third base and runs to home to give her team its third home run. (Tracy A. Woodward)

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Johnson is hitting .400 as the fourth batter in the Spartans' lineup, with 34 hits and 24 RBI this season, and although her natural position is shortstop, Johnson hasn't missed a beat since stepping in when the Spartans needed a catcher two years ago.

"She played a fabulous game," said Spartans Coach Ed Steele, who attributed a great deal of Broad Run's success to his catcher. "I think Haley is a greatly undervalued player. Some catchers might hit more home runs than she does, but I wouldn't trade her for anything. She's solid and she doesn't loose her cool."

It can be hard to stand out on a team that is 26-0 and is ranked No. 2 in the country by the National Fastpitch Coaches Association and chock full of highly touted Division I prospects. But Johnson's unflappable nature both in the batter's box and behind the plate has earned the confidence of her teammates.

For Delahaba, whose 387 strikeouts and 11 no-hitters are major factors for Broad Run's overpowering success this season, Johnson's stability and knowledge of the game is crucial. Without Johnson, Delahaba said, her job would be a lot harder.

"She definitely goes unnoticed a lot, but she's the other half of what I do," Delahaba said. "She calls her own game. Every pitch that she calls is exactly the pitch that I'm thinking of. I rarely ever have to shake her off. I respect her a lot. You could put her anywhere in the field and she'd do well. That's the ideal player."

Loudoun County Loses

In another Virginia AA quarterfinal game Tuesday night, Loudoun County dropped a 4-3 decision to Poquoson, ending the Raiders' season.

Tagged: Broad Run High School, high school sports, Loudoun County High School, Loudoun Valley High School, softball

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