JC rolls to finale

FORT WAYNE - Everything worked for the Patriots.

Each hitter in the starting lineup had at least one hit.

And for the second straight night, the pitching and defense allowed only one runner past second base in the entire game.

They will need exactly that type of team effort Friday.

Jay County High School rolled to a 10-0, five-inning victory Wednesday over the Fort Wayne North Side Redskins in the semifinal round of the Class 4A sectional softball tournament at Homestead.

The win sets up the biggest challenge of the season, as JCHS (10-6) will take on the undefeated and second-ranked host Spartans in Friday's championship game at 7 p.m.

"I thought the girls made some good adjustments," said Patriot coach Doug Arbuckle, whose team had errors in each of the first three innings before breaking the game open with four runs on five hits in the fourth. "We sat back and waited and hit the ball more in the later innings. I was very proud of the girls."

Coming off of a 1-0 win over Marion in Tuesday's opening round, Arbuckle said he felt his team was a bit sluggish at the start of the game. However, it avoided any damage from the errors and then scored two unearned runs in the bottom of the third inning to take a 4-0 lead.

The Patriots pulled away in the fourth, when Anneliese Jetmore hit a lead-off single and advanced to second base when the ball skipped past right-fielder Jessica Darby. North Side pitcher Keturah Coleman managed to retire the next two batters, but JCHS rallied with two outs.

Senior Tiffany Davis drove in Jetmore with a single to left field, and then advanced to second on Brittany Mann's single to center. Coleman then lost control, hitting Kendra Younger to load the bases and then allowing Davis to score on a wild pitch.

Jessica Piercey added an RBI single as part of the four-run frame.

Davis finished her outstanding day - she totaled two hits, two runs and four RBIs - with a two-run single in the fifth inning to end the game and give herself the win. She struck out five batters on the way to her three-hit shutout.

"Tiffany, being a senior, I expect that leadership out of her," said Arbuckle. "Given our season, only playing 14 regular-season games, it's been hard to get into a groove with our pitchers. She hadn't pitched in over a week. I was real proud of her."

Arbuckle also got a big effort from his No. 9 spot in the order.

Jetmore jumped up from the junior varsity team to start as the designated player and finished 2-for-2 with a run. Nikka Chaney, who has missed most of the season with an injury, played first base as the flex player before stepping into the batting order for Jetmore in the fifth inning and crushing a leadoff double to left-center field.

"That's real important that we hit one through nine, especially down there at the bottom in our eight and nine spot," said Arbuckle, who also got a single and a run from No. 8 hitter Caitlin Gilbert. "If they can get on base for No. 1 and 2 ... that's real key. ... They played excellent today."

Catcher Danielle Wellman added a pair of singles, and her courtesy runner, Kyli Kelso, scored twice. Mann totaled two hits, and Younger finished with two RBIs.

The victory gave Jay County double-digit wins for the third straight season, despite missing more than 10 games because of weather cancellations this year. It also marks the second consecutive trip to the sectional championship game, in which they will get a rematch against Homestead.

The Spartans and Patriots played to a 1-1 tie through eight innings last season before a questionable call at first base allowed Homestead to score the winning run with two outs in the bottom of the ninth.

Homestead cruised through its semifinal game Wednesday, crushing Huntington North 19-1 in five innings.

JCHS does not play Homestead during the regular season. It lost 3-1 to Huntington North this year.

"That's always a goal, to make it to that sectional championship," said Arbuckle. "Of course we want to move on, but we have to take it one step at a time. Last night we were thinking about Marion ... tonight we had to focus on Fort Wayne North. ... We'll go back to work tomorrow at practice and try to get ready for Homestead. ... It's going to be a good challenge for us."[[In-content Ad]]