By Cort Reynolds

ADA__The red-hot Ada High School softball team exploded for 10 first-inning runs and rolled to a 19-1 win over non-conference opponent Spencerville and stay unbeaten on a warm Thursday evening, April 9.

The Bulldog girls hammered three home runs and allowed just three hits in the dominant blowout effort.  

Ada scored three runs in the first frame before an out was recorded, and tallied six before two were out.

Ada improved to 9-0 overall with the lopsided mercy rule victory. Spencerville fell to 1-3 after the five-inning loss.  

“We hit the ball hard,” said fifth-year Bulldog head coach Jeff Bassitt. “Maycie pitched a good game. Tea came in and pitched well.

”Nobody struck out, everyone made contact,” he noted. “Everybody got to play.”

Freshman starting hurler Maycie Dewese worked around her first inning error as the frame ended on an unassisted double play line-out to first sacker Tea Griffith.

Ada knocked out seven hits in the bottom of the first outburst as they sent 12 batters to the plate and tallied a whopping 10 runs. Two Bearcat errors and a walk added to the onslaught. Junior Reese Jordan delivered a key double in the uprising. 

Leadoff batter Emily Shanks walked, singled and scored twice in the first inning.  

Spencerville threatened in the top of the second after an error and a single. But Dewese stranded two batters in scoring position with a key strikeout to end the threat.

She set the Bearcats down in order in the third with two whiffs to end her mound stay.

In the Ada third, the Bulldogs batted around again. Shanks led off by lining a solo homer over the left field fence for an 11-0 lead. Sophie Fleming singled and stole second. Griffith then golfed a two-run shot over the wall in left to stretch the margin to 13-0.

Summer Wibley walked, and Shay Smith beat out a bunt single. An error plated Wibley with the 14^th run. Dewese then tomahawked a high pitch and deposited it over the left-center field fence to provide a commanding 17-0 margin.

Dailah Preston smoked a double to left-center and later scored when the Bearcat third baseman missed a pop-up. 

In the top of the fourth, the Bearcats finally scored. A leadoff single and error in the outfield put a runner on second. After a groundout to second, the Bearcats scored on a single sliced to right field.

Reliever Griffith struck out the last batter to end the frame on top, 18-1.

Ada senior Alainee Buxton singled sharply to left to lead off the home fourth. Brooklyn Roberts also singled, and an error put runners on second and third. 

Aubry Jordan lined a double off the base of the fence in left field to drive in Buxton with the final run, but Roberts was thrown out trying to advance on the basepaths. 

Griffith blew away the three Bearcat batters on strikes in the seventh to finish with a flourish.

Griffith hit a two-run homer, doubled, singled and drove in four runs. Shanks hit a solo shot, singled, scored three times, drove in two, walked once and a stole a base.

Smith singled twice, scored a run and stole a base. Aubry Jordan doubled, walked and scored twice. Dewese knocked in three runs with a home run. Preston slugged a double and a single, drove in a run and scored two runs.

Reese Jordan stroked a double, singled and scored two runs. Buxton singled and scored a run. Sophie Fleming had a hit, scored twice and scored a run. Roberts added a single.

Dewese hurled three shutout innings, giving up one hit and striking out three. Griffith gave up two hits and a run in two innings with five whiffs. Ada did not walk a batter.

The Bulldogs stranded five runners, while the Bearcats left three on base.

Ada out-hit the Bearcats 17-3, and capitalized on six errors.

The rampaging Bulldogs have outscored their opponents 123-22 in their nine victories. Their first nine games have been at home. 

The Bulldog girls play their first road contest at Kalida (2-4) on Saturday, April 11. A showdown with league power Elmwood (5-0, 3-0 BVC) looms Monday, April 13 at Ada.

WP-Dewese (3-0) LP-Post 

2B-Preston (A). R. Jordan (A), A. Jordan (A)

HR-Shanks (A), Dewese (A), Griffith (A)