By Don Ketchum

The softball team from Peoria Liberty took a historical step on Friday (May 6) in its Class 4A Division II state-tournament journey.

The Lions won their first state game in the school’s history 6-2 over visiting Surprise Shadow Ridge, and now take on one of the perennial powers in the quarterfinals on Tuesday (May 10). Third-seeded Liberty will play host to No. 6 Phoenix Paradise Valley.

“It is good to have another game on our home field,’’ said Liberty coach Kortny Hall.

A year ago, Liberty was in the state tournament for the first time but fell to Douglas in the opening round.

The girls used that experience and matured into a stronger team in 2011.

“We’ve been playing well the last few weeks and we seem to be peaking at the right time,’’ said Hall, whose team improved its overall record to 23-7.

Liberty had split two games with Shadow Ridge earlier in the season, “and we came out hitting today,’’ Hall said.

The Lions needed to put the bat on the ball because Shadow Ridge (18-9) scored its two runs in the first inning.

They proved that you don’t need to hit the ball a long way to be productive.

In the second, Anderson Phillips got a base hit and advanced to second on an outfield error. She scored when a pop fly by Jaclyn Jayo to the right side was to deep for the infielders to reach it and too shallow for the outfielders to reach it. The result was a double and the Lions had a 3-2 lead.

Another bloop hit led to a pair of Liberty runs in the fourth.

With two outs, Lindsey Campbell reached first on an infield hit. Phillips hit a high chip shot between the pitching circle and second base. The second baseman’s throw was too late and Campbell continued around third base and reached home safely.

Phillips later scored on a single to center by Nicole Himes.

Liberty added an insurance run in the sixth when Jayo hit a one-out double and scored on another single to center by Himes.

The Lions played good defense, and Cortney De La Chica pitched a strong game.

“Our defense was amazing. It kept us in the game,’’ Hall said.

Shadow Ridge, which is even younger than Liberty and has no seniors, appears to have a strong future, particularly with Kylie Strand in the pitching circle. The sophomore pitched well despite the loss.