West Branch Advances to District Final with 5-1 Victory Over Ravenna

Beloit, OH- The West Branch Warriors welcomed the Ravenna Ravens to Sis Woods Field for a District Semi-Final affair Tuesday afternoon. The Warriors advanced thanks to a 17-0 victory over Trinity. The Ravens, coming off a 8-0 victory over Lake Catholic in the Sectional Final, scored first when Mallory Sterba grounded into a fielders choice and Jocelyn Smallwood scoring on an errant throw home trying to cut her down.

The advantage was short lived however, as Libbie Davis slapped a single to right field, bringing Ellie Tucker around to score from 2nd. The score would remain knotted at 1 through the top of the 4th.

In the bottom of the 4th, the Warriors offense was finally able to break loose. The rally started with 1 out when Senior 3B and Mount Union commit Addi Craven sent a moonshot to left, clearing the wall and breaking the tie. With 2 outs, Zoe Metzger sent a shot to the right center field gap. Camryn Wike followed suit, sending a rocket to nearly the same exact spot on the field. The back-to-back doubles extended the lead to 3-1 and led to a pitching change. Carly Loper welcomed the new hurler to the game with a sharp liner to center field, plating courtesy runner Kayleigh Simmons and giving the Warriors a 4-1 advantage.

Metzger brought in the 5th and final run on a fielders choice, bringing Craven in for the insurance run. The victory pits the Warriors with the Field Falcons for the Division 4 Region 16 District crown, scheduled for Thursday evening in Massillon.