Freshman pitcher’s dominance helps Lady Wolves to perfection

By Josh Bowe

Special to the News-Mirror

Throughout Timberview’s giant district win against Mansfield High School last week, Timberview’s freshman starting pitcher Miriah Denson looked nothing like a freshman.

Denson appeared calm, composed and incapable of being rattled last Tuesday night. She was the key as Timberview took down Mansfield 2-1 to keep Timberview’s record perfect in District 7-5A. After Friday’s 16-1 win against DeSoto, Timberview sits atop 7-5A with a 5-0 record, the only undefeated team in the district.

Even after Mansfield senior catcher Robin Conley hit a solo home run in the bottom of the seventh inning to bring the score to 2-1 with no outs, Denson wasn’t fazed.

Denson immediately regained her composure and struck out the next three batters to give Timberview the win. Denson even had a no-hitter going until the sixth inning and remained poised even after it was broken up.

Timberview coach Donya Mooney said that she’s amazed at Denson’s resolve for such an early age.

“She has a very short memory,” Mooney said. “She’s a competitor and we’re lucky to have her. She’s done a great job with this team and all of them play so well together.”

Indeed, the Lady Wolves appear to be a team with strong chemistry with Denson at the helm. After Denson’s 11th strikeout ended the game on Tuesday night, the entire team mobbed Denson at the pitcher’s circle.

Denson even brushed off her individual performance and thanked her teammates more than anything for her stellar evening.

“All my pitches were working,” Denson said, before pausing and switching the topic from herself to the team. “I had my team behind me. I wouldn’t have won it without them.”

Her Lady Wolves teammates did do their part. Timberview committed no errors in the field and took advantage of two Mansfield errors to give Denson a lead to work with.

“We work a lot of defense and our kids take pride in that,”Mooney said. “They know we have a great pitcher in Miriah but they also know if the ball is hit to them, they’re going to make a great play on it.”

It’s that kind of team-wide effort that has Mooney most excited about how this season can end. It doesn’t hurt that her Lady Wolves also dispatched their biggest crosstown rival.

“It’s huge for our program,” she said. “Any time we play Mansfield that’s a big rival for us. Our kids were tough and sucked it up tonight.”

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