(Photo by Tim Pitts) caption: FINAL TURN: Hun School softball senior star Alex Thier heads to third in Hun’s 4-1 loss to Blair last Thursday in the state Prep A title game. Thier, the lone senior on the squad, provided leadership and solid play at third to help Hun finish with a final record of 10-7.

Thier Experiences Highs and Lows in Final Week of Hun Softball Career

Bill Alden

Alex Thier began last week by experiencing one of the greatest highlights of her Hun School softball career.

The scrappy senior third baseman helped the Raiders edge Peddie 3-1 in the state Prep A semifinals on May 12, avenging two regular season defeats to the Falcons and snapping that program’s four-year Prep A title streak.

“Peddie was a huge game,” said Thier. “We wanted that game so bad.”

Two days later, Their and her teammates had a bad day as they hosted Blair in the Prep A title game.

The Raiders spotted Blair runs in the first and third innings to fall behind 2-0. The Buccaneers tacked on two more runs in the top of the sixth to build their advantage to 4-0.

Hun battled back in the bottom of the frame to push across a run and put Blair on its heels.

After holding Blair scoreless in the top of the seventh, the Hun players were on their feet, chanting and cheering for a last-inning rally.

The Raider hitters weren’t able to answer those cheers, going down one-two-three as they fell short of the Prep A title.

In reflecting on the setback that left a lot of the Hun players in tears, Thier said the team didn’t suffer a letdown after the Peddie win.

“We did want Blair,” said a red-eyed Thier. “To say we are state champions would have been great. They just hit the ball and we didn’t.”

Hun head coach Kathy Quirk acknowledged that Blair’s pitching made the difference in the title game.

“On Tuesday we came up with some clutch hits, today we didn’t,” lamented Quirk. “It is a pitcher’s duel and our pitcher got hit a little more than theirs.”

Thier provided Hun with more than hits over her stellar career. “Alex is a great leader,” asserted Quirk of her lone senior. “There is a kid that in four years never missed a game or practice. That says something about commitment and dedication.”

Thier’s leadership rubbed off on her teammates as they put together a seven-game winning streak in the middle of the season and then produced a late surge to make the Prep A championship game.

“It’s a great bunch of kids that worked together and fought hard,” said Quirk, whose team fell 2-1 to Lawrenceville in a regular season contest on Friday to end the season with a 10-7 record.

Quirk acknowledged that the Raiders fell short of some of their goals. “We lost some games that we thought we should have won,” said Quirk.

“When we beat Peddie, we were on a high and I thought we would go all the way to the title.”

In Quirk’s view, Hun has the pieces in place to be a title contender next spring. “We are losing only one senior even though she is a good one,” said Quirk.

“We have a great core of returning players. They need to work in the weight room and play ball over the summer.”

Thier, for her part, was proud of the way the Raiders kept working together even as their Prep A title hopes slipped away.

“Before the game, we had a great talk and everyone had high hopes,” recalled Thier.

“We came out and we were all fired up. It started to die down a little bit in the middle of the game but towards the end, we really picked it up. We were rooting on our pitchers and hoping for the best.”

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