Medomak Valley softball cruises to 17-1 decision, Belfast baseball 7-1 win in first official games since 2019
BELFAST — It had been two years since official high school baseball and softball games had taken place for Medomak Valley and Belfast, and after a long layoff due to the pandemic, the diamonds again were busy on Tuesday afternoon, April 20.
Panther softball and Lion baseball went back the ways of "old," as the squads' offense, defense and pitching proved on point.
Medomak Valley bested Belfast 17-1 in a five-inning road win to open the softball season, while the Lion baseball team notched a 7-1 victory over the Panthers on their home diamond.
Watch videos and see nearly 125 photos below.
The following is recap of reported results.
Softball
Medomak Valley 17, Belfast 1 (5 inns.)
At Belfast April 20, the Panthers took an early lead before the Lions tied the game, but the visitors' bats got hot to secure the victory.
Medomak Valley scored one run in the first inning, seven in the second, two in the third, one in the fourth and six in the fifth. Belfast plated its lone run in the first inning.
Emily Harris (2 doubles, single, triple, 3 runs) and Alyssa Creamer (home run, triple, single, 3 runs) led the Panthers on offense, as Harris was a home run from hitting for the cycle, and Creamer a double away from that performance.
Haley Puchalski (single, triple, 2 runs), Grace White (single, 2 runs), Addison McCormick (single, run), Natalie Stewart (double, run), Eliza Nelson (triple, run), Hannah Lee (single, run) and Sara Nelson (run) also turned in strong plate appearances for the visitors.
For the Lions, Sarah Fuller (single, run) led the hosts, while Lexi Hopkins (single) and Paris Wetherington (single) had strong at-bats.
Madison Boynton keyed the visitors in the circle, as she gave up one run on three hits, with eight strikeouts and one walk.
Haley Withee pitched for Belfast and allowed 14 hits, with three strikeouts and seven walks.
The Panthers started strong, as Creamer belted a triple to lead off the contest, and came home to score on a passed ball.
The Lions tied the score in the bottom of the first inning after Fuller led with a single, stole second, and came home on a Hopkins' RBI-single.
From there Medomak Valley's offense kicked into high gear, as the visitors rattled off six hits, scored seven runs, and never looked back the rest of the way.
Baseball
Belfast 7, Medomak Valley 1
At Belfast April 20, the Lions led the entire way, and broke open the game in the third inning against the Panthers for the first win of the campaign.
The hosts scored one run in the first inning, five in the third and one in the sixth, while the Panthers tallied one run in the top of the sixth.
Zepherin Leppanen (single, double, 2 RBIs, run) led Belfast at the plate, while Jason Bartlett (single, double, 2 runs), Matt LeBlanc (single, 2 RBIs, run), Ethan Porter (single, run), Chase Sanders (single, run), Tommy Walker (2 RBIs), Chris Kelley (RBI) and Tanner Veilleux (run) played key roles at the plate.
Ethan Reed (single, run) led the visitors on offense, as Blake Morrison (single), Max Moody (single), Hayden Staples (single) and Isaac McCollett (single) had solid at-bats.
Kelley and Walker toed the rubber for the Lions, and combined for one run on five hits, with six strikeouts and one walk.
Matt Holbrook, Kallon Mortensen and McCollett pitched for Medomak Valley and allowed seven runs on six hits, with three strikeouts and seven walks.
The Lions started the game strong in the bottom of the first inning when Bartlett hit a double to right-center field, and came around to score on a LeBlanc walk with the bases loaded.
Belfast's offense click into gear in the bottom of the third, when Veilleux walked to start the inning and came around to score on LeBlanc's single to left. Porter and Sanders connected for RBI-singles, while Leppanen hit an RBI-double, and came home on a throwing error, for the sixth Lion run.
The Panthers cut into the hosts' lead in the sixth, when Reed led the inning with a single down the third-base line. Reed advanced to second on a passed ball and third on Moody's single to left field. A double play allowed Reed to plate the first run for the visitors.
The final Belfast tally came from Bartlett, when he crossed the plate on Kelley's infield grounder in the bottom of the sixth inning.