Kari Thompson's fifth homer led Poland over West Branch, 4-2.

Kari Thompson's fifth homer led Poland over West Branch, 4-2.
By JOE SCALZO
VINDICATOR SPORTS STAFF
POLAND -- The ball was rising, rising, rising, and all the players on the field and in the dugout were watching. And the coaches were watching. And the fans were watching. Heck, maybe even some of the drivers passing by were watching.
And Poland's Kari Thompson? Well, she had her head down.
Not watching. Just hoping.
"I'm not allowed to look at the ball," she said. "It's bad luck."
Wait. We're getting ahead of ourselves. Let's back up a second. At the beginning of the season, Thompson's father promised her he would fix the computer in her room if she hit five home runs.
She entered Monday's sectional final against West Branch with four. Early in the game, she hit a rocket down the left field line that went over the fence. It also went foul.
"I had a feeling I'd straighten it out eventually," she said.
Chance at five
In the top of the seventh, she got her chance. The Bulldogs were trailing 2-1 with two outs and nobody on before Jenna Medina worked a walk and Ashley Conger followed with a single. Thompson, the cleanup hitter, was 0-for-3 so far, but she also was hitting about .500 this season.
"They probably would have walked her, but first base wasn't open," said Poland coach Reid Lamport. "And I know they didn't want to put the tying run on third. You don't want to lose the game because of a passed ball or a wild pitch."
So they pitched to her. And Thompson, not wanting to risk the added pressure of a two-strike count, creamed the first pitch toward center. As West Branch center fielder Allison Edie raced back toward the fence, Lamport wasn't thinking home run.
"I knew it was at least one run because it was going to get over her head," he said. "But it looked a little too high to get over."
It wasn't. Thompson didn't see it go over -- she doesn't watch the ball, remember -- but she heard the screams. As she rounded third, she high-fived Lamport and was surrounded by her teammates.
Final score: Poland 4, West Branch 2.
"I was just trying to reach home plate," she said. "They tackled me first."
Had she ever done anything like that?
"Um, no," she said.
Had Poland?
"Never," Lamport said. "Not in the last 16 years, anyway."
Two years ago, however, Poland beat the Warriors in the sectional final 1-0 with three straight singles in the bottom of the seventh. It's a tad more dramatic than Lamport would like.
"But you've got to wait on youth sometimes," said Lamport, whose team has just two seniors. "When she hit it, I was one of the happiest guys in the area."
Semifinal
Poland (21-2) advances to play Lakeview (13-5) in Monday's district semifinal at Jefferson's JAGS Fields. If Poland beats Howland on Wednesday, it will clinch a share of its 18th straight league title.
"Nobody wants to be on the team that breaks that streak," Thompson said.
Jenna Susany (4-1) pitched the final four innings of Monday's game to pick up the win, while Vana Morgan got the loss for the Warriors (8-13). Bri Benedict had three hits, including a double, and scored a run for West Branch.
Thompson, meanwhile, got her fifth home run. As she was being interviewed, her father walked by and said, "Don't say anything stupid."
She didn't. But she isn't going to let her dad off the hook on his promise to fix that computer, either.
"Yeah, if you could put that in the paper, that would be great," she said, "because I know he's not going to do it."
scalzo@vindy.com