The Dragon softball team swept their fifth straight league doubleheader to capture the OAA I title on May 22.
The 6-1 and 12-1 victories over North Farmington improved Lake Orion’s record to 26-5 on the season, with all of those wins coming with pitcher Danielle Dunn at the mound.
Her 26 wins is a school record, and Dunn is only in her first year at the school.
‘For a freshman even to play at a varsity level at any position is tough,? coach Denny Davis said, noting he’s had just two other freshman pitchers during his long career at Lake Orion.
Dunn has certainly done her part, but the great defense behind her also deserves plenty of credit.
‘Our kids are mature, they don’t make a lot of mistakes,? Davis said. ‘And when they do make a mistake, we recover from them well.?
The Dragons 11-1 mark in league play bettered the mark of second place Waterford Kettering by one game.
‘We were counting on people like (Kristin) Larsen, (Sam) Bell, (Eileen) Frezza and (Lauren) LaPine,? Davis said of his elite seniors. ‘But players like Layne Smedley at shortstop have done a great job. She’s been a blue collar worker.?
The coach also praised the play of Lisa Carroll at first base.
In all, Davis starts seven seniors, a fact he said helped to carry them to the league title and could help them make a deep run in the state tournament, which starts next week.
The impressive six-day, nine-win streak started when LO swept a doubleheader at home against Troy Athens on May 17.
Dunn got the win in both games for LO, who won 9-2 and 8-1.
Larsen and Sasha Perryman homered for the Dragons in the second game. Both players finished the day with three RBI.
On May 19, the Dragons added two more wins, this time at the expense of visiting Utica Eisenhower, 8-3, and 8-1.
Larsen doubled, homered and drove in three in game one, while Smedley went 3-for-3 with a walk for LO.
In the nightcap, Perryman’s three-run homerun was the highlight of a seven-run fourth inning that put the game away.
Dunn added two more wins to her total, giving up 10 hits total on the day.
On May 20, Eisenhower was LO’s first opponent, as the Dragons looked to repeat for the third time as champions of the Troy Athens Invitational.
The title hopes were in doubt when Eisenhower scored nine runs in the third inning, to erase a 10-1 LO lead. But Dunn came in and shut down the Ike bats, while the Dragons added five runs in the sixth for a 15-10 win.
The Dragons had 20 hits in the game, including four players with three or more, and a Perryman home run.
The semifinal was yet another nail biter, as Southfield Christian scored two late runs to tie the game at four and send it to extra innings.
In the eighth inning, Natalie Hunt’s sacrifice fly scored Rachel Traurig for the winning run, sending the Dragons to the final for another contest against Athens.
In the championship, the LO offense was again stellar, grabbing an early 5-0 lead and adding four more runs in the fifth for a 9-1 final.
Dunn, Hunt, LaPine, Larsen and Perryman were all named to the All-Tournament team.