BASEBALL
Urbana 10, Bellefontaine 5
Urbana used a game-changing fifth inning to rally past Bellefontaine 10-5 and complete the rivalry sweep over the Chieftains.
The Hillclimbers got on the board first in the opening inning. Carter Houseman led off with a single, advanced to third after a groundout and wild pitch, then came home on an RBI groundout from Grady Lantz for an early 1-0 lead.
Bellefontaine answered in the second. Lincoln Banta reached on an error, Sutton Daring drew a two-out walk, and Aiden Smith lined an RBI single to center to even things at 1-1.
The Chieftains added single runs in both the third and fourth innings to build a 3-1 advantage. Cayleb Overmann came around to score in the third after reaching on an error, while Daring swiped home on a double steal in the fourth after working his way aboard.
Sammy Kline kept Urbana’s bats quiet early, but the Hillclimbers broke through in a massive fifth inning. Austin Hill drew a walk, Colton Roberts was hit by a pitch, and Houseman laid down a bunt single to load the bases. Brody Donahoe then worked a four-pitch walk to force in a run before Lantz stepped to the plate and delivered the knockout blow — launching a second-pitch grand slam over the center field wall to flip the game. Kevin Endres followed immediately with a solo homer to left, capping a six-run inning and giving Urbana a 7-3 lead.
Bellefontaine tried to answer in the bottom half, cutting the deficit to 7-5 on RBI singles from Aven Caudill and Daring.
Urbana added insurance in the sixth. Endres doubled to open the inning and later scored on a balk before Hill ripped a two-run double to center to extend the lead to 10-5.
Lantz finished off the win on the mound, tossing two perfect innings with a pair of strikeouts after his grand slam highlighted a five-RBI day. Houseman added three hits, while Hill finished with two hits and two RBIs. Endres also recorded two hits, including his solo home run.
Caudill led Bellefontaine with two hits and two RBIs.
Urbana improves to 12-5 and extends its winning streak to seven games. Bellefontaine falls to 7-9.
SOFTBALL
Urbana 13, Bellefontaine 5
Urbana’s offense stayed hot all night, powering past Bellefontaine 13-5 in the first game of the rivalry series.
The Lady Hillclimbers got going early with two-out offense in the first inning. Isla Wooten launched a solo home run to left, then Bailee Packer doubled and came home on an RBI single from Maley Pine to make it 2-0.
Urbana added three more in the second. With the bases loaded, Addie Fox lifted a sacrifice fly to score Destiny Ramirez, before a passed ball and pickoff error allowed two more runs to cross, stretching the lead to 5-0.
Morgan Hoffman added a solo homer in the third to make it 6-0, and the Lady Hillclimbers blew it open further in the fourth. Packer delivered an RBI single, Fox stole home, Pine added another RBI single, and Wooten capped the inning with an RBI knock of her own to push the lead to 10-0.
Bellefontaine finally broke through in the fourth when Joy Fogan stole home. Natalie Canter added an RBI groundout in the fifth, and the Lady Chiefs scored twice more in the sixth on a passed ball and an error to trim the deficit to 10-4.
Urbana answered with three more runs in the seventh. Wooten scored on an error before Packer delivered a two-RBI double to push the advantage to 13-4. Bellefontaine scratched across one final run on an Ava Dolan sacrifice fly, but could get no closer.
The Lady Hillclimbers piled up 14 hits, led by three-hit performances from Chloe Easterday, Packer, and Wooten. Packer drove in three runs, while Wooten and Pine each added two RBIs.
Bellefontaine was led by a two-hit day from Addison Wical, while Canter and Wical each drove in runs.
Urbana improves to 12-6, while Bellefontaine drops to 3-14. Both teams meet again Thursday.
