By CHRIS BROOKS, sports editor, wellsvillesports.com
The Lady Lions of Wellsville had to fight their way back from behind after Our Lady of Mercy provided a big five-run frame to take the lead away in the beginning stages.
But not long after, they would counter their spark with a massive firework of their own, as they buckled down and delivered a humongous 11-run bottom half of the third that saw five different Lady Lions score at least a pair of hits at the plate, as they powered up a rebound 18-9 home win under the lights.
“We were down early, and it was nice to see our team battle back,” said Lady Lions coach Matt Burke. “We swung the bats extremely well tonight, and you could see that our players were focused. Mercy has a lot of good softball players, and that is a quality win for us against them. I’m really proud of our ladies for the fight they showed tonight to battle back.”
Both teams would exchange a lead through the first inning of play, with Wellsville (4-1) having the final word with a four-run stanza. Like the opening frame, the two teams once again saw their offenses clash one more time in the third, after the defenses held one another in check.
Our Lady of Mercy took the lead away from the Lady Lions in the top half, scoring a five-run outing to take a 6-4 lead. But the go-ahead frame would only last for a half inning, as the hosts fought right back with the biggest of punches in the evening — an 11-run doubling up of Our Lady of Mercy, a frame that saw them speed away for good behind what was an 17-hit effort at the plate.
Leading that charge was Brazen Beckwith, who had four hits. Makenzie Cowburn blasted three doubles, and drove in three runs in the process to further the cause. Emma Dunaway and Marley Adams each had three hits to chip in with, Dunaway driving in two additional runs while Adams stole two bases. Rounding off was Makenna Dunbar, who had two hits to contribute.
In the circle, the win belonged to Marissa Ordway across the first three innings, as she fanned three and walked three. Dunbar added in three strikeouts and four walks in relief.
The Lady Lions will renew their seasonal trip to Virginia, which will consist of four straight games against Class A schools, beginning with a 6 p.m. contest against Charlottesville on Monday.
Linescore
Our Lady of Mercy 10 5 300 0 – 9 7 3
Wellsville 40 (11) 120 X – 18 17 1
OLM – Ava Verdi (LP) (K, 4BB), Kaitlyn Malucci (5) (4K, 2BB), and Natalie Casale.
WLSV – Marissa Ordway (WP) (3K, 3BB), Makenna Dunbar (4) (3K, 4BB), and Lindsay Stuck, Brazen Beckwith (6).
