CONCORD – They claim a storied history. They expected to triumph. And why not? That’s what the girls of Salem softball do – perennially.

However, this year in Class L, parity prevailed. Change was evident throughout a balanced regular season – no team, including top-ranked Salem, lost less than three games. That sense of change carried into an exciting postseason – the Blue Devils won two one-run games to reach the finals.

Then, in the state championship on Saturday, June 14, Timberlane’s Steph Barrett delivered the most devastating change of all.

The Owls’ senior used her off-speed pitch to outduel Salem’s Alex Gallant, 1-0, denying the Blue Devils another crown.

“What are you going to say to a group of girls who’ve been to the championship game three straight years?” said Salem’s head coach, Harold Sachs. “They’re champions.”

Yet Timberlane, with three straight first-inning singles and the contest’s lone run, hoisted the championship trophy at Memorial Field in Concord. Salem’s solemn players and coaches lined up between third and home – some visibly upset – watching the Owls hoot and holler.

Seniors Gallant, Danielle Stoodley, Katie Bettencourt, Erin Lyons and Valerie Boutin played their final game for Salem and their appreciative mentor.

“They’ve all had great careers here,” said Sachs. “And this is a special group of players.”

Indeed, Salem refused to go quietly, putting a runner at third base in four different innings. Bettencourt led off the bottom of the first with a smash the Owls’ second baseman couldn’t handle. She stole second and took third on Erica DePinto’s single. In the second inning, Jennifer Cabral reached on an infield hit and eventually reached third. DePinto walked to lead off the sixth, and pinch runner Geena Terino stole second, then moved to third on a groundout.

Salem’s best chance came in the fifth, when Sara Bracken led off with a triple to right. However, pinch runner Bethany Storie never moved from third.

That’s because Timberlane’s Barrett, a left-hander, mixed a good fastball with a better offspeed pitch. The change up kept Salem’s aggressive hitters off balance throughout the contest. She delivered the change on any count, and she threw it for strikes.

“Steph could have given in to the (pressure-packed) situations and allowed us to get back into it,” said Sachs with a smile and shrug. “At some point, somebody had to get a hit for us, a big hit. I think it was Steph’s ability to change speeds and throw strikes that prevented that.”

But Sachs was excited about his young group and its future. Thirteen players come back in 2009 as Salem seeks a return to the top.

“(My players) have nothing to hang their heads about,” he said. “We lost in the championship, and we won 15 straight games to get there. We’re a program, not a one-year wonder.”