March 5th’s varsity baseball game against Southeast Career and Technical Academy was a giant win for Shadow Ridge High School. Not only did they score eleven runs, but senior pitcher Skyler Fife pitched perfection. That day not even one Roadrunner ran all four bases, or even got in a hit, because Fife was on fire.
Fife threw a rare “no hitter” that day when a pitcher is able to win a game without letting a single player from another team get a hit on the ball. The only exception for a player getting on base is by walks, or other mistakes by the pitcher.
“One word to describe Skyler’s performance would be FOCUSED,” says Shadow Ridge’s varsity catcher Kolton Lynn.
Lynn’s glove caught the heat every pitch, so he got to see that focus as well as the team’s excitement as the game progressed toward the anticipated victory.
Lynn continues, “I caught against SECTA. I didn’t even realize at first that it was a no-hitter until our coach told us afterwards, it was kinda crazy. It was cool because I was able to help him find a rhythm to work in, and then he kept that rhythm throughout the game and ended up with a no-hitter.”
Every inning racked up the runs for Shadow, and SECTA still never got a hit. Fife had an impressive ten strike outs. The outfielders could have been picking dandelions for the amount of action on the green side of the field, however, the team was buzzing with energy knowing they would win because they had the run lead. The team sprinted out of the dugout to celebrate on the field after that final out of the game.
From on top of the pitchers mound, Fife was loving the moment just as much, or even more than his teammates.
He says, “The team is very fun, and everyone encourages each other. It felt great. I’ve always wanted to throw a no-hitter and I got more excited as I got closer and closer.”
Because of Fife’s dedication, a lot of hard work, and love of the game, he’s excelled at the sport of baseball. It wasn’t until his sophomore year at Shadow Ridge High School baseball that he started pitching. He loves the game and hopes to continue to play baseball after his two year mission to Chile.
Fife says, “I enjoy baseball because there’s a lot of little details to learn and get better at, and it’s fun to always try and improve.”
With Fife being the amazing pitcher he is, it’s fun to see that he is humble and cares a lot about pushing himself to be better every time he steps up to the mound.
Photo credits go to BRYTUSIMAGES.
https://brytusimages.pixieset.com/
