Editor’s note: This story was updated because an earlier version included an inaccuracy.
Three central Ohio high school softball teams are headed to the state tournament, two of them for the first time.
Lancaster (Division I) and Mount Vernon (Division II) captured their first regional championships May 31, and Liberty Union is headed back to state in Division V after winning the Division III trophy a season ago.
All state tournament games will be held at Firestone Stadium in Akron beginning June 4 and lasting through June 8.
Here are recaps of all regional finals involving central Ohio teams:
Division I
Lancaster 5, Gahanna Lincoln 2
Junior catcher Kendall Brown homered in the first inning, kick-starting the Golden Gales (28-2) to the Region 1 title at Olentangy and their first state tournament berth.
Senior second baseman Emalene Chevalier had three hits and two RBIs, Brown had two hits and walked twice and senior third baseman Jenna Spurling homered for Lancaster, which plays Lebanon in a state semifinal at 5:30 p.m. June 7.
Senior pitcher Ashlin Mowery struck out nine, walked three and scattered four hits.
Sophomore catcher Adrionna Dunton homered for Gahanna (19-12), which was denied its first state berth since 2017.
Lebanon 5, Grove City 3
Lebanon got to Grove City sophomore pitcher Stephanie Dent in the bottom of the first in the Region 2 final at London as senior Kennedy Jauch hit a two-out, two-run triple to open the scoring.
The Greyhounds (15-11) grabbed the lead in the third on Addy Phillips’ three-run homer to left, but Lebanon pitcher Sophia Sheidler held Grove City scoreless from there, striking out eight consecutive batters at one point and stranding the bases loaded in the sixth.
Senior Ella Teubner drove in the tying and go-ahead runs for Lebanon (26-4) on a groundout in the bottom of the third and a double in the fifth.
“I got out of my head after giving up that home run and I was making sure to just stay calm (in the circle) and keep my composure,” Sheidler said. “It feels amazing. I’m ready to go up there (to Akron) and strike some more girls out.”
–Shelby Dermer, Cincinnati Enquirer
Division II
Mount Vernon 11, Dublin Scioto 0 (5 inn.)
Sophomore pitcher Jocelyn Scarbury fired a no-hitter with 10 strikeouts, coming within one walk of a perfect game as the Yellow Jackets (26-2) run-ruled the Irish (18-9) in Region 5 at Pickerington Central and clinched their first state berth.
Sophomore infielder Keely Pollard homered twice, raising her total to 11 for the year, and had three RBIs to lead Mount Vernon. Junior catcher Hailey Rudrick with 1 for 3 with a triple and seniors Brooke Dovenbarger and Rylee Myers had two hits apiece.
“My curveball was working really well; I just had to trust in that, and knowing my defense was behind me made it a whole lot easier,” Scarbury said. “It’s worked really well all year, but I knew I would really be using it in this game to go away from their batters.”
Mount Vernon, which won its 20th consecutive game and averages 10 runs, will play Whitehouse Anthony Wayne (25-4) in a state semifinal at 12:30 p.m. June 7.
Scioto was in its first regional tournament.
Division III
Dover 13, Bloom-Carroll 2 (6 inn.)
Senior first baseman Raychel Grove homered and junior second baseman Madelyn Gates was 2 for 2 with a double and two walks, but the Bulldogs (25-4) trailed throughout the Region 10 final at Pickerington Central and fell behind for good when Dover scored seven runs in the fifth inning.
Ohio State signee Jenna Molk hit one of four home runs for the Tornadoes (26-3) and struck out two in 2⅔ innings of relief.
“We just came up short; had a miscue here and there and things just steamrolled,” Bloom-Carroll coach Chris Lucas said. “Our pitchers were hitting their spots and making adjustments, but their girls just hit the ball very well.”
Division IV
Hillsboro 5, Logan Elm 2
Junior first baseman Brittani Lane tripled and sophomore catcher Morgan Arnold added an RBI single in the sixth inning, when the Braves (19-8) scored both of their runs in falling short of a second consecutive state berth in the Region 13 final at Groveport.
Four players had one hit each for Logan Elm, which made a Division II state semifinal last year.
Hillsboro (22-3) went ahead to stay in the third, when it scored on an error and doubled its lead on a Chloe Roberts single.
Springfield Kenton Ridge 11, Licking Valley 1 (6 inn.)
Kenton Ridge (30-0) run-ruled Licking Valley (23-6) with three runs in the fifth inning and four in the sixth in Region 14 at Mason.
The Panthers were held to singles from senior catcher Taylor Penick, senior outfielder Hailey Small and sophomore utility player Tori Baughman in falling short of their first state berth since 2014.
Division V
Liberty Union 4, Springfield Shawnee 0
Sophomore Haedan Brunty was 2-for-4 with a two-run double in the fourth inning, freshman Eden Wilson had an RBI single and pitched 1⅓ innings in relief of junior starter Suzie Shultz and the Lions (28-1) earned a return trip to state with a shutout win in the Region 20 final at Centerville.
Shultz struck out seven and walked two in 5⅔ innings, and the Lions pulled ahead with two runs in the third and two in the fourth.
Liberty Union will face Akron Manchester (25-5) in a state semifinal at 10 a.m. June 5.
Oak Harbor 6, Fairbanks 5
In the Region 19 final on May 30 at Wapakoneta, senior catcher Jenna Dee went 3 for 4 with a home run, triple and two RBIs as the Panthers (23-2) came up one win short of their first state tournament since 1990.
Dee homered in the seventh inning to get Fairbanks within a run, and the Panthers briefly got the go-ahead run on base when sophomore Claire Meihls singled with two outs, but Maddy Sines was thrown out at third to end the game. Meihls also finished with three hits.
Kise struck out nine, walked three and gave up nine hits.
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High school sports reporter Dave Purpura can be reached at dpurpura@dispatch.com and at @dp_dispatch on X.
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Lancaster, Liberty Union, Mount Vernon advance to OHSAA softball state semifinals
Reporting by Dave Purpura, Columbus Dispatch / The Columbus Dispatch
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