The Lake Orion softball squad won their first district title in three years by topping Adams, 5-0, and Stoney Creek, 8-2, on Saturday at home.
The team advances to regional action next weekend at Clarkston.
‘It was a great day for us,? said Coach Denny Davis. ‘Danielle (Dunn) pitched exceptionally well and I thought we had some clutch hitting.?
The semifinal with Adams was never in doubt, as Jenny Kasper’s single in the first inning scored Tina Wolverton, and that was all Dunn and the defense would need.
The junior pitcher scattered five hits in the shutout effort and Lake Orion cruised to victory.
The second game was not as easy, as Stoney Creek took a 1-0 lead into the fifth inning before the Dragons responded. Tessa Tomlin had RBI singles in both the fifth and sixth innings, Jenny Kasper added two RBI and Jessica Bays had a two-run double for the hosts.
Davis said the key to both the five-run fifth and three-run sixth was getting their leadoff hitter, Wolverton, on base.
‘She had a couple of good slap hits,? he said. ‘She’s real quick and she makes other teams make mistakes. We just started to hit the ball a little bit and run a little bit.?
The coach added that the middle of the team’s lineup is starting to peak at the right time.
‘Tomlin is hitting over .450,? Davis noted. ?(Jessica) Bays is hitting the ball well. Kasper’s hitting the ball well and (Lauren) Farrington has come on strong for us.?
After giving up a run in the first inning, Dunn allowed just two hits over the next five innings and struck out the side once as well. She finished the game with seven strikeouts.
‘The defense behind her was about as good as it’s been all year,? Davis noted.
With the team holding an 8-2 lead and one runner aboard, the rightfielder Tomlin fielded what looked like a bloop single and threw out the lead runner at second base. Davis said that assist, which was #12 or #13 for Tomlin on the season, is just one example of how the team stepped up behind their pitcher.
They’ll need more of the same if they are to make noise at regionals. The Dragons will take on league foe Troy in the semifinals, a team with which they split their two regular season meetings.
‘If we play well, we can play with anybody,? Davis said of his team, which improved to 23-15 overall.