GREENVILLE – The Greenville softball team celebrated senior night on Monday with a 13-1 Greater Western Ohio Conference victory against Sidney.
The Lady Wave quickly got going with 10 runs in the first inning.
Karysn Shaffer doubled to center field and stole third. After Cassie Cromwell walked and stole second, Alli Hill cracked one to the fence in the center field for a two-RBI double.
After Makayla Hanes reached on an error, Hill scored on a wild pitch. Hanes also moved around the bases and scored on a wild pitch to make it 4-0.
Facing a full count with two outs, Jazzlyn Petry singled to center field. Sydney Grote, Logan Tabler and Shaffer drew three consecutive walks, which combined with wild pitches and passed balls made it 6-0.
Kester hit to second base, and Sidney overthrew the ball to first base, allowing Tabler and Shaffer to score. Cromwell singled into center field, and Hill reached on an error to load the bases. Hanes singled to right field, scoring Cromwell and Hill before Sidney got out of the inning with a groundout to first.
Sidney got its first hit of the game in the second inning when Hallie Westerbeck singled up the middle, but Greenville got the next three batters out to end the inning.
Greenville scored its final three runs in the bottom half of the second inning.
Petry led off with a single to center. Moments later after a walk to Tabler, Kester hit a RBI double to left field to score Tabler and Shaffer. Cromwell then hit a RBI single to left to score Kester and make it 13-0.
After a 1-2-3 third inning for both sides, Westerbeck drew a two-out walk in the top of the fourth. Kacey Swiger hit a RBI double into the right-center gap to drive in Westerbeck for Sidney’s lone run of the game.
In the bottom half of the inning Tabler drew a walk, Lani Shilt was hit by a pitch and Cromwell and Hill both singled, but the Wave couldn’t get any runs in and the score remained 13-1.
Westerbeck singled in the fifth inning and advanced to second on a passed ball, but Greenville stranded her and won 13-1 in a five-inning run rule.
The Wave had 10 hits and no errors while the Yellow Jackets had three hits and five errors.
“We had a great game,” Greenville coach Jerrod Newland said. “We competed hard, and it showed. Our record is now 15-5.
“It is now May so we are on a mission. We need to keep working hard, and we’re on a mission to make Akron.
“We have great seniors. All three played as freshman, which is very hard coming out as a rookie. They all made all league. They are great leaders, and I am very proud of all of them. All three of them are on the National Honor Society. I am proud that they know there is a life after the games, and I am very proud of them.”
The Greenville seniors – Ashton Kester, Allison Minnich and Jazzlyn Petry – recalled some of their favorite stories as part of senior night.
During their junior year assistant coach Chris Greer had a foul ball rocket toward him. He fell off of a bucket, and they got a great picture of it. Greer’s wife bought the picture at their silent auction.
On the way to Ashland they stopped at a rest stop and Kester was drying her hands and was cold so trying to cuddle with the dryer. When she went to walk away her hair was stuck in the hair dryer, and the seniors had to pull her hair out of the dryer.
Minnich was told to bat left handed and her being a right-handed batter switched hands in the middle of batting. Unfortunately everyone noticed but her.
All three seniors will go to college to play softball. Kester is going to Findlay, and Minnich and Petry are going to Sinclair.
