Bellefontaine 10, Riverside 8
Bellefontaine picked up its first win of the season in a high-scoring battle, outlasting Riverside 10-8 to move to 1-1, while the Pirates fall to 2-2.
Offense was the story from the start, with both teams capitalizing on defensive miscues as each side committed eight errors. Riverside struck first in the opening inning, using a Keira Manahan triple along with a Chieftain error and passed ball to take a 2-0 lead.
The Lady Chiefs answered immediately in the bottom half. Chloe Heminger delivered an RBI single, then Maci Flesher reached on an error that brought home two runs. Paxton Stewart followed with an RBI single to give Bellefontaine a 4-2 lead after one.
Riverside evened things up in the second behind a leadoff hit from Emma Pope and a string of Bellefontaine errors. The Chiefs regained the lead in the third when Heminger reached on another Pirate miscue, allowing Joy Fogan to score and make it 5-4.
The Pirates surged back in the fourth, as Kara Klingler tied the game with an RBI single before Emilee Robinson added a two-run single to put Riverside ahead 7-5. Bellefontaine responded again, tying the game at seven thanks to a two-out, two-RBI double from Addison Wical, followed by two more runs scoring on a dropped fly ball.
Riverside briefly grabbed the lead again with the help of an error in the sixth, but Fogan delivered the decisive blow in the bottom half with a solo home run to right-center, pushing the Chiefs in front 10-8.
Fogan then closed it out in the seventh, striking out two batters—including the final out on three straight swinging strikes—to seal the victory. She finished with nine strikeouts in the circle and added the insurance-run homer, while seven different Chieftains recorded hits.
Robinson led Riverside with a 2-for-3 performance and three RBIs as seven Pirates collected hits.
Bellefontaine will face Graham next, while Riverside travels to Fort Loramie on Thursday, March 26.
Indian Lake 6, Minster 5
Indian Lake opened its season with a strong finish, using a big sixth inning to pull away and hold off Minster for a 6-5 victory.
The Lakers got on the board early, as MacKenzie Miller reached on a single to start the game and later scored on a double to center from Bre Wisener. Minster answered in the second with a solo home run from Lucy Schmiesing to tie the game at 1-1.
Both teams added a run in the fourth to keep things even at 2-2 heading into the sixth, where Indian Lake took control. Brylee Buyer started the rally with a one-out double, and after Izzi Macksey reached on an error, Annie Rapp delivered an RBI single to give the Lakers a 3-2 lead. Following a walk, Miller came through with a bases-clearing double to stretch the advantage to 6-2.
Minster made things interesting in the seventh, capitalizing on a mix of errors and hits to cut the deficit to 6-4. With two outs and the bases loaded, a walk brought the tying run to third and Schmiesing back to the plate. However, she popped out on the first pitch, allowing the Lakers to escape with the win.
Wisener earned the victory with a complete-game effort, allowing five runs—just one earned—on four hits and two walks while striking out seven.
Miller led the offense with a 3-for-4 performance, driving in three runs and scoring once.
Indian Lake will look to keep the momentum going as it travels to Kenton Ridge on Wednesday.
Benjamin Logan 7, Sidney 2
Benjamin Logan opened its season with a strong showing, using a big sixth inning and a complete-game effort from Adilynne Gregg to defeat Sidney 7-2.
Sidney struck first in the second inning, taking advantage of Raider miscues to push across two runs on a passed ball and an RBI groundout. Benjamin Logan answered in the bottom half, as Jozie Taylor singled, moved up on an error, and later scored on another error off a sacrifice bunt from Nevaeh Fogle to cut the deficit to 2-1.
The Raiders evened the score in the fourth when Jaylyn Parker led off with a single, advanced on a sac bunt from Taylor, and came home on an RBI infield single from Fogle.
Benjamin Logan broke the game open in the sixth. Parker sparked the rally with a leadoff triple and scored on a Taylor RBI single. After an out, the Raiders strung together four consecutive singles to stretch the lead to 7-2.
Gregg took care of the rest, shutting down Sidney in the seventh to secure the win. She finished with a complete game, allowing two runs on four hits and one walk while striking out seven.
Offensively, Ryland Norviel led the way with a 3-for-4 performance and an RBI, while Brielle Kline added two RBIs. Three other Raiders recorded multi-hit games.
Benjamin Logan improves to 1-0 and will travel to Southeastern on Thursday, March 26.
Urbana 4, Tri-County North 3
Urbana stayed unbeaten and improved to 3-0 with a thrilling 4-3 walkoff win over previously undefeated Tri-County North.
The game featured a strong pitching duel early, as Isla Wooten kept the Panthers in check, allowing just two baserunners through the first three innings while striking out four. On the other side, Tri-County North’s Lola Grieshop worked around early walks and didn’t allow a hit until the third.
Urbana broke through in the fourth inning when Maley Pine led off with a single, advanced to third, and scored on an RBI groundout from Lola Rice to take a 1-0 lead. The Panthers answered in the fifth, capitalizing on a Hillclimber error with two runners on to even the score.
After both teams battled through key moments, Tri-County North grabbed a 3-1 lead in the top of the seventh with back-to-back RBI singles following two quick strikeouts from Wooten.
The Hillclimbers responded in dramatic fashion in the bottom half. Chloe Easterday led off with a single, and a double brought Urbana within one. Later, Bailee Packer came through with a clutch triple to tie the game and put the winning run just 60 feet away. Pine then delivered the final blow, lifting a deep fly ball to bring home the winning run.
Wooten earned the win with a complete-game effort, allowing three runs on six hits while striking out 11.
Urbana will look to keep its momentum going as it travels to Madison Plains on Wednesday.
North Union 23, Mechanicsburg 1
Mechanicsburg struggled in its season opener, falling to North Union 23-1.
The Lady Indians were unable to overcome defensive miscues, committing 13 errors that the Wildcats quickly turned into runs. North Union broke the game open early, scoring seven runs in the first inning and adding eight more in the second before tacking on four runs in both the third and fourth to secure the run-rule victory.
Despite the tough outing defensively, Mechanicsburg did find a bright spot in the fourth inning. Avery McDowell sparked the offense with a triple and later came around to score on an RBI groundout from Aubrie Retterer, accounting for the team’s lone run.
Leah Cox kept the Lady Indians’ bats quiet for most of the game, striking out nine and allowing just three hits over five innings.
Mechanicsburg falls to 0-1 and will look to regroup in its home opener against West Jefferson on Monday, March 30.
