Olivia Dumm tossed a one-hitter on Thursday to lead the Westfall softball team to a 7-0 Division III Southeast District sectional final win over visiting Valley.
Dumm used 87 pitches to toss her complete game, 70 of which were for strikes. The junior right-hander walked none and struck out nine.
The Mustangs got off to a quick start, scoring three runs in the first and two more in the second to take a 5-0 lead. Westfall tacked on its final two runs in the fifth.
Dumm also led the 13-hit barrage by the Mustangs by going 3-for-4, including a pair of doubles, with four RBI and two runs scored. Abbie Bickenheuser went 2-for-4 with an RBI and run scored, and Makayla Cook and Sydney Fuller each went 2-for-4 and drove in a run. Gabby Henry chipped in a 2-for-3 day and scored twice.
The Mustangs (15-8) travel to Unioto on Tuesday to take on Fairfield in a district semifinal.
View more photos from Westfall’s sectional final win over Valley.
Circleville 9,
Vinton County 7
Circleville scored three runs in the top of the ninth on Thursday en route to claiming a 9-7 Division II Southeast District sectional final win over host Vinton County.
Chandler Hayes opened the ninth with a single to right center and stole second after a fly out to left. After Cara Cooper was intentionally walked, Katie Folkes delivered an RBI single to left center that scored Hayes.
Ella Michael then flew out to short right center, with Cooper tagging up and using her speed to beat the throw home to give the Tigers an 8-6 lead. Gabby McConnell then reached on an error on a ground ball back up the middle that allowed Folkes to score.
“Anytime we can get Chandler on base to start an inning then good things typically follow for our team,” Circleville coach Dave Truex said. “I felt like we hit the ball fairly well as a team and also put some pressure on them and took advantage of a few errors.”
Vinton County hit a solo homer in the bottom of the ninth, but McConnell was able to nail down the final three outs to claim the win. The Circleville sophomore allowed seven hits and seven runs (three earned) over nine innings. She walked six and struck out 10.
“Gabby had to battle with a tough strike zone, but she stayed with it and kept competing. Normally, Gabby doesn’t walk that many batters,” Truex observed. “Gabby came through when she had to and made some big pitches for us. I’m pretty proud of the performance she gave us.”
The Tigers jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the first before the third-seeded Vikings were able to record an out.
Hayes singled to open the game and Alyssa Liston hit a double down the left field line to give the Tigers an early lead. Cooper then blasted a home run over the left center field fence for a two-run shot.
“That was a no-doubter by Cara and really helped to give us some early momentum,” Truex said.
In the third, Liston doubled down the left field line again and scored on an infield single off the bat of Michael.
Vinton County tied the game in the fourth, but the sixth-seeded Tigers were eventually able to counter with two runs in the sixth on a two-run single to right by Hayes.
The Vikings tied the game again in the sixth and eventually force extra innings.
Hayes paced the Tigers with three hits, drove in a run and scored. Cooper singled, homered and drove in two runs, Liston doubled twice, drove in a run and scored twice and Folkes chipped in two singles, an RBI and scored.
Circleville makes the short trip to Logan Elm on Friday for a makeup game.
After winning just four games last season with perhaps the youngest team in the Mid-State League Buckeye Division, the Tigers (14-6) will now pack their gear on Monday for a trip to Ohio University and a district semifinal against second-seeded Sheridan. First pitch is at 5 p.m.
“Our kids have made a lot of progress and one thing you can say about them is they are going to keep battling until someone says that’s enough. That’s the way it’s been all year, because our kids don’t like to lose,” Truex said. “We’ve played some tough teams in our league and almost all of our games have been close, whether we’ve won or lost.”
Teays Valley 19,
Westland 0
Teays Valley seized control with an 11-run first on Thursday on its way to a 19-0 Division I Central District sectional final win over visiting Westland.
The Vikings (23-1) outscored the lowest two seeds in the 48-team Central District field – Walnut Ridge and Westland – 45-0 to advance through sectional play.
Emma Helwagen went 2-for-2 with an RBI and two runs scored, Reagan Mengerink was 2-for-3 with two RBI and two runs scored, Sydney Manring went 2-for-2 with two RBI and a run scored, Michelle Brumfield was 2-for-2 with two RBI and two runs scored, Morgan Cantrell went 2-for-3 and scored twice, and Alyssa Brown doubled, scored and drove in four runs.
Madison Cline allowed two hits and struck out two in two innings of work and was credited with the win. Isabel Sayre struck out five over the final three innings.
The Vikings are slated to take on Olentangy in a district semifinal on Tuesday at a site to be determined.
Sheridan 2,
Logan Elm 1
Logan Elm pushed second-seeded Sheridan deep into extra innings on Thursday, but the host Generals were able to walk-off with a 2-1 win in 10 innings.
The seventh-seeded Braves scored their run in the fifth and Kylie Smith made a diving catch with runners on first and second in the ninth to keep the Division II Southeast District sectional final going.
Logan Elm (12-10) concludes the season on Friday by hosting Circleville for a Mid-State League Buckeye Division makeup game.
Amanda-Clearcreek 28,
Worthington Christian 0
Amanda-Clearcreek had its red zone offense at peak performance on Thursday in a 28-0 Division III Central District sectional final win over visiting Worthington Christian in five innings.
The Aces (7-14) advance to a district semifinal on Tuesday against Cardington-Lincoln at a site to be determined.