By Chad Wingert (Contact / Staff Bio)

Originally published June 9, 2009, 06:56 p.m. EST. Updated June 9, 2009, 06:56 p.m. EST

BAY CITY — USA won the Regional championship Saturday with a 9-0 victory over Deckerville. But to them, that isn’t the win that mattered. Ask any Patriot and they will tell you that USA’s 4-0 win over Bay City All Saints was the big one.

“I think everyone was really nervous in that first inning,” USA pitcher Jillian Williamson said. “Just the way we approached our first at-bat and fielded. It was a big game and they are a good team. I know I was nervous.”

Yet it was Williamson who pitched nearly perfect, allowing just one hit and walking four while fanning 14 batters in seven innings. Williamson got hung up in a few jams as Bay City threatened with runners on second and third on more than one occasion, but she was not afraid of picking herself up and depending on her teammates.

“It’s easy to work out of jams when you can rely on your defense behind you,” Williamson said. “You don’t have to pitch a perfect game because your teammates are always there to pick you up.”

Dani Gremel’s two-run blast got the scoring started for USA who later received an RBI from Minda Martinez. Jenny Williamson had two singles and Jillian had one hit in the game one win over the Cougars.

As the Patriots watched the game between Arenac-Eastern and Deckerville, you could see the burden lifted off of the squad’s shoulders as they soaked up the sun and relaxed for a few hours in between games.

“ With them being defending State Champs, it’s nice to get them out of the way,” Williamson said. “They are a good team, maybe one of the best we will see all year. So that was a big win.”

Williamson was perfect in the Patriots 9-0 title game win over Deckerville.

Williamson struck out 17 while allowing no hits, ho runs and no walks in the seven inning game. She also led the Patriots at the plate with three hits and four RBI, alongside Martinez who posted a pair of hits and drove in two runs. Gremel knocked in a pair of runs on one hit while Kiersten McBrayer, Brittany Gruehn and Jenny Williamson each chipped in with a hit. Katie Schaus tallied two hits.

With the two wins, the Patriots improve to 38-1 on the season as well as claiming a new record in the MHSAA record books. USA passed Allen Park Cabrini with 362 RBI on the season, the most ever by a team in MHSAA history. Also, Gremel’s dinger now bumps the team home run record to 52 on the season.