Lady Leopards Win 25-0, Head to Districts – Softball
Louisville 25, Akron Ellet 0, 5 Innings
The #2 Seed Louisville Leopards Softball Team earned a record setting 25-0 victory over the visiting #7 Seed Akron Ellet Orangemen in five innings Wednesday Evening at the Diamond of Dreams. With the victory, Louisville improves to 21-4 on the season and advances to take on the #3 Seed Perry Panthers in the District Semifinals on Monday, May 13 at 5:00 PM.
Sarah Cantley became the first pitcher in Louisville history to throw a no-hitter in a tournament game. She pitched all five innings, allowed just two baserunners, and struck out 10 en rout to the sixth no-no of her varsity career. Cantley is now 14-3 on the season and she has totaled double digit strikeouts in 8 games.
Cantley received plenty of run support as the Lady Leopards tied the school’s tournament record for runs scored with 25. Louisville scored 5 runs before a single out was recorded and put up double digits in the first inning alone. The 10 runs scored by the Leopards in the opening frame ties the known record for runs scored in a tournament inning. Louisville also scored 10 runs in the third inning of a 25-3 home Sectional Final victory over the Green Bulldogs in 2013.
The Leopards homered 6 times as a team, which is now the new school record for any single game. Kaycee Ollis and Shae Thomas both hit a pair of 2-run dingers during the contest. Kaylee Nolte and Alex Fankhauser also hit back-to-back solo shots to lead-off a 9-run third.
Thomas’ second home run came two batters after Fankhauser. That fence-clearing blast tied the team record for 3 home runs hit in the same inning, a feat previously accomplished twice in Louisville Softball history. LHS has now hit 31 total home runs as a team in 25 games and is just two off the mark for the school record of 33 homers hit back in 2015 (in 28 games).
All-in-all 9 different Lady Leopards recorded hits in the game, 10 scored, and 7 different hitters drove in runs. Ollis went 4-for-5 while driving in 6 runs and scoring 5 times. Teagan Rice finished a perfect 4-for-4 with a double, 3 RBIs, and 4 runs scored. Fankhauser and Nolte also drove 3 runs and scored 3 times each. Justina Sirohman and Lauren Stillwagon also notched RBI singles
Louisville pounded out 22 hits in their dominate performance at the plate and nine different batters registered a multi-hit game. Sydney McKeever singled twice at the top of the lineup and Lexi Zavarelle also finished with a pair of hits at the end of the lineup. Fankhauser, Sirohman, and Thomas also had two hits and Nolte finished 3-for-3.
With the victory, Louisville now sits above .500 in tournament play all-time with a record of 35-34 in the postseason. This includes a 16-13 record since returning to Division I in 2006. The Leopards and Orangemen have never played prior to Wednesday’s Sectional Final.
Records fell and history was made Wednesday when the Lady Leopards played their final home game of the season. For seven of those players, it was the final time they would ever play on the Diamond of Dreams. They certainly left their legacy all the way through the final out.
UP NEXT: The Louisville Leopards Softball Team will next take on the #3 Seed Perry Panthers in the DI District Semifinals on Monday, May 13. Game time is set for 5:00 PM from the Eagles #180 Sports Complex on the campus of Massillon Washington High School.
VARSITY SOFTBALL BOX SCORE
LEOPARDS 25, ORANGMEN 0, 5 INNINGS
Team 123-45–R-H-E
Ellet 000-00–0-0-4
Louisville (10)39-3X–25-22-1
AKRON ELLET ORANGEMEN SOFTBALL VARSITY BATTING STATS
Lineup | AB | R | H | RBI | BB | SO |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
McLeod | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Cook | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
Murray | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
Hayes | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
Givens | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
Golden | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
Rose | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
Bragg | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
Brown | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
Wolf | – | – | – | – | – | – |
Totals | 16 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10 |
AKRON ELLET ORANGEMEN SOFTBALL VARSITY PITCHING STATS
Pitching | IP | #P | S% | H | R | ER | SO | BB | HR |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Wolf | 1.0 | 62 | .532 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 2 | 3 | 2 |
Givens | 3.0 | 93 | .527 | 12 | 15 | 8 | 2 | 4 | 4 |
Totals | 4.0 | 155 | .529 | 22 | 25 | 18 | 4 | 7 | 6 |
LOUISVILLE LEOPARDS SOFTBALL VARSITY BATTING STATS
Lineup | AB | R | H | RBI | BB | SO |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Sydney McKeever | 5 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
Teagan Rice | 4 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 1 | 0 |
Kaycee Ollis | 5 | 5 | 4 | 6 | 0 | 0 |
Sarah Cantley | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 1 |
Kaylee Nolte | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 1 | 0 |
Katie Porter | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Alex Fankhauser | 3 | 3 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 0 |
Lauren Stillwagon | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
Justina Sirohman | 4 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
Ashley Zifer | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
Shae Thomas | 4 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 0 |
#11 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Lexi Zavarelle | 4 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Lauren Bennett | – | – | – | – | – | – |
Totals | 37 | 25 | 22 | 21 | 7 | 4 |
LOUISVILLE LEOPARDS SOFTBALL VARSITY PITCHING STATS
Pitching | IP | #P | S% | H | R | ER | SO | BB | HR |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Sarah Cantley | 5.0 | 58 | .759 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10 | 0 | 0 |
Totals | 5.0 | 58 | .759 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10 | 0 | 0 |
Records: Louisville 21-4