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Bulldogs clinch 2nd district crown in program history

By Cort Reynolds

BATH – The Ada High School softball team used strong defense, good pitching and timely hitting to defeat Carey 6-3 in a hard-fought Div. VI District 3 final on a cool Friday evening at Lima Bath. 

The Ada girls improved to 21-4 with the big victory. It marks the second district crown in program history, and their first since 2018.

Upset-minded Carey finished 7-14 after the defeat. The game was postponed from Thursday.

Winning hurler Jenna Bassitt hit 3-3 with a home run and a double. She  scored two runs and drove in one run.

Ada senior catcher Natilyn McClain smashed a crucial two-run double, tripled and added a single to help lead the 12-hit Ada offense. 

“We had a lot of people step up, seven different girls got hits,” said Lady Bulldog head coach Jeff Bassitt. “We are hitting one through nine in the order.

“Natilyn and Jenna came up big for us,” he noted. “We made some big plays on defense.”

Senior ace Bassitt earned her 21st win in the circle this spring. She scattered seven hits over seven innings, and allowed no earned runs. She struck out three and walked two.

The Ada girls out-hit Carey, 12-7. The Bulldog girls scored single runs in each of the first four frames, then plated two big insurance runs in the home half of the sixth.

Carey threatened in the top of the first inning. A single through the 5.5 hole and a Tylinn Stoll check-swing single that landed just inside the right field line put two on with one out. 

Bassitt then induced a nubber back to her off a change-up, and got out of the jam by inducing a pop-out.

Bassitt led off the Ada first by lining a solo home run over the left field fence on the second Carey pitch of the game. “That fired us up and got us going, along with Natilyn’s foul pop-up she caught in the first,” said Bassitt.

Emily Shanks smoked a single to left field, and McClain singled sharply to right. 

But Carey wriggled out of the jam with a groundout, a caught stealing and a strikeout.

Bassitt set the Blue Devils down in order in the second inning. In the Ada second, Dailah Preston lined a single to center field. Junior right fielder Alainee Buxton then stroked a run-scoring double into the gap in left-center to make it 2-0.

After a Bassitt sacrifice bunt moved her to third, she was stranded.

In the Devil third, they hit a leadoff bloop single to shallow left-center. A bunt to third resulted in a dropped throw at first to put runners on first and third.

Bassitt retired Carey hurler Stoll on a soft liner right back to her. But a walk loaded the bases. Devil hitter McKenna Stoner then rifled a three-run double to right field to put the underdogs ahead, 3-2.

Ada tied it with a run in the home half of the third. McClain hammered an opposite field triple off the right fence leading off. A fly ball to shallow center wasn’t deep enough to bring her in on a sacrifice fly.

Senior Karley Wagner then laid down a good squeeze bunt to score McClain with the tying run. “We got the momentum back there,” said Bassitt. Carey went down in order in the top of the fourth

Reese Jordan lined a triple into the left-center field gap to ignite the Ada fourth. Dailah Preston lined out to third as Jordan scampered back safely. Buxton hit a grounder to shortstop to drive home Jordan with the lead run, and she reached first when she booted the ball. 

Bassitt singled to left and Ada had two runners in scoring position when the inning ended on a fly-out and a groundout to the shortstop, who atoned for her error with a nice play.

With one out in the top of the fifth, Tess Griffith came in and made a nice sliding catch of a flyball in shallow center field. Stoll lined a shot off Bassitt’s glove but Wagner scooped it up and made a strong throw to first. But she was ruled safe on a close play.

However, the Ada defense came up big again when Shanks ranged into short left field and made a fine running backhand catch of a looper to end the threat.

Wagner stroked a long fly to deep right field in the Bulldog fifth, but was caught in front of the fence. Aidra Preston smoked a double into the left-center gap and moved to third on a passed ball. But she was stranded on a strikeout to end the threat.

In the top of the sixth, left fielder Dailah Preston made a fine running grab on a liner into the gap leading off. The defensive effort ended up being a key play in heading off what could have been a lead-changing inning. A grounder to Shanks made the second out. 

Carey then walked and singled to right field and put runners on second and third. But Bassitt got the last out on a pop-up to sure-handed shortstop Shanks to get out of the jam.

Ada then scored two big insurance runs in the bottom of the sixth. Dailah started the inning with a sharp single. The incoming center fielder then dropped Buxton’s shallow pop-up, but the Devil shortstop retrieved the spinning ball in time to get a force-out at second.

Bassitt laced a one-hop double off the fence in left-center field to put two runners in scoring position. Shanks hit a fly ball to fairly deep center which was caught, and Ada failed to tag up and score.

But it became a moot point when McClain came up and crushed a two-run double off the wall in center field to extend the lead to 6-3 and give Ada some breathing room.

Griffith walked but the inning ended on a ground-out to second base.

In the seventh, Carey led off with a single up the middle. The next batter lifted a long fly to right-center field, but Buxton ran over and made a fine catch near the warning track.

The next batter grounded out to Jordan at third base. The game then ended on a fly ball to Griffith in center to seal the district title.

“We wanted to make a run in the tournament, that was a pre-season goal,” Bassitt said. “I am happy for the girls. Winning the district is exciting, it had only been done once at Ada.

“The girls have put in a lot of work,” he added. 

Bassitt threw 91 pitches, 64 of which went for strikes or were put in play.

Dailah Preston had two hits and scored a run. “Dailah has improved her hitting by leaps and bounds from last year,” said Bassitt.

Jordan tripled and scored a run. Wagner drove in a run and played fine defense at second base despite a hamstring injury.

Underrated Aidra Preston smacked a double. Buxton drove in two runs with a key double, and scored a run. Shanks added a single and solid defense. Griffith drew a walk and patrolled center field well.

Ada left eight runners on base, while Carey stranded seven.

Blue Devil hurler Stoll tossed six innings and gave up six earned runs on 12 hits with two strikeouts. 

Stoner collected three RBI on a double for Carey. Bayah Harsanje scored once and singled once. Autumn Boillon singled and scored a run. Raigan Kessler, Stoll and Garnyr McKelvey each hit a single. 

Ada committed one error, while Carey made one miscue. 

With the district final victory, the Bulldogs reached 21 wins for the first time ever in a season. The five Ada seniors have now combined to win 61 games over their four seasons.

123     456     7     R     H     E

Car 003 000 0 3 7 1
Ada 111 102 x 6 12 1
WP- Bassitt (21-4)   LP-Stoll
2B-McClain (A), Bassitt (A), Buxton (A), Stoner (C)

3B-McClain (A), Jordan (A)

HR-Bassitt (A)

Regional preview
Ada plays the regional semifinals at Findlay Wednesday, May 28 vs. Montpelier (18-5). The Locomotives rolled over a 19-5 Patrick Henry squad 8-0 in the semis, and then beat Defiance Tinora 8-1 Friday to win their district title. 

Loco senior hurler Madelyn Hopper struck out 14 and allowed just three hits in the shutout win over PH.

“We will have to bring our A game to beat them, no doubt about it,” said Bassitt of Montpelier, which is located in the extreme northwest corner of Ohio.

The regional final is set for May 30 at 5 p.m. Ada has not advanced to a regional final in program history. The Bulldogs lost to Tinora 3-2 in eight innings at the Findlay 2018 regional semis.

Gibsonburg (17-7), the top-seeded champ from the Clyde district, faces Bucyrus Wynford, upset winner of the Shelby district, in the other regional semifinal May 28. 

The Golden Bears beat Elmore Woodmore 6-2 to capture the Northwest district 4 title Friday.

Third-seeded Wynford knocked off top seed New Washington Buckeye Central 11-0 in the Northwest district 5 final at Shelby to win the first district crown in program annals.