AKRON – A year after a heartbreaking loss in the regional final, the Dover softball team wanted to leave no doubt this year, and junior Jenna Molk made sure of it with a first-inning bang.
Molk, an Ohio State University commit, hit the first pitch she saw and blasted it over the leftfield fence to give the Tornadoes all the momentum they would need against Holland Springfield, and in the process, delivered Dover its first state championship.
The Tornadoes finished with 11 hits, received outstanding pitching, and played flawless defense, and the result was a dominating 10-0 Division III state final victory over the Blue Devils on Saturday, June 7, in front of an electric, sold-out crowd at Firestone Stadium in Akron.
“We’ve said all year that when we score in the first inning, it gives our whole team a boost, and that’s why Jenna is our leadoff batter,” said Dover coach Hannah Duff, who also won a state title as a player. “I was confident going into the game and that our bats were going to start better than what they did in our last game, but they exceeded my expectations.
“You go into the game wanting the bats to start aggressive, but for Jenna to hit the home run and then see her leaping over to second base and for her teammates to follow up with hard hits after that, you know things are going to work out.”
Molk led the charge at the plate by going 3 for 3 with four RBIs, and she hit a three-run home run in the sixth inning to give her 16 on the season.
“I was thinking all day that I was going to be aggressive and jump on the first pitch,” Molk said. “I wanted to start the game with a hit to get our team going, and it happened to go over the fence, and I was happy to have the lead already – I was looking for my pitch to hit, for sure.”
The Tornadoes (28-3) scored a run in each of the first three innings to take a 3-0 lead before Avery Contini, who went 3 for 4 with four RBIs, delivered a two-run double to give the Tornadoes a 5-0 lead in the fifth inning.
While Dover was racking up hits, junior Kara Lint was doing her thing in the circle. She allowed a one-out lead-off double in the top of the first inning, but the runner was thrown out at third base trying to stretch it into a triple.
Lint pitched four innings, giving up three hits while striking out eight. Molk came on in relief like she has all season and pitched two scoreless innings without giving up a hit and striking out three.
“I have never felt this way in my entire life,” Duff said. “You have 18 girls that you are proud of and 18 girls that you trust. It is just an incredible feeling.”
Dover softball’s road to the state championship
Final: Dover 10, Holland Springfield 0
Semifinal: Dover 7, Mount Orab Western Brown
Regional final: Dover 13, Bloom-Carroll 2
Regional semifinal: Dover 2, Archbishop Hoban 0
East/Southeast District final: Dover 1, Sheridan 0
East District semifinal: Dover 4, New Philadelphia 3, 12 innings
East District opening round: Dover 1, Tri-Valley 0
Tom Wilson is a sports reporter for the Lancaster Eagle-Gazette. Contact him at 740-689-5150 or via email at twilson@gannett.com for comments or story tips. Follow him on X, formerly known as Twitter twil2323.
This article originally appeared on The Times-Reporter: Dover leaves no doubt in winning its first state championship in school history
Reporting by Tom Wilson, The Times-Reporter / The Times-Reporter
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