JC beats Blackford, 4-1

After suffering a pair of lopsided losses to Wapahani on Saturday, the Jay County High School softball team got back to its winning ways Monday.
The Patriots won their home opener against the Blackford Bruins, 4-1.
Jay County (1-2) scored the first run of the game in the second inning and tacked on two more in the third. The Patriots pushed their lead to 4-0 with another run in the sixth, until the Bruins broke the shutout in the seventh.
Larissa Boles gave up three hits and struck out nine for her first win of the season. She also helped her cause at the plate with a double and an RBI.
Catherine Dunn and Kady Finnerty recorded the other two hits for Jay County. Kristen Simons, Chloe Steigerwalt, Gabby Hart and Dunn all plated runs for the home team.

Tribe routs FM
FORT RECOVERY, Ohio — Fort Recovery’s baseball team moved to 5-0 with a 17-2 rout of the visiting Franklin Monroe Jets.
The Indians scored three runs in the first inning before breaking the game open with eight and six runs in the second and third innings respectively. The Jets finally ended the shutout with both of their runs in the fourth frame.
Mitchel Stammen led the Indians at the plate, going 3-for-3 with a triple and a pair of walks. The senior drove in two runs and scored three times while adding a stolen base.
Jackson Hobbs was 2-for-4 with a double, and he smacked a bases-loaded triple for three of his four RBIs. Cole Wendel, who got the win on the bump, also had four RBIs. He struck out seven, walked five and gave up two hits with two earned runs.
Daniel Wiseman had both hits for the Jets.

Fort track wins
FORT RECOVERY, Ohio — The Fort Recovery boys and girls track teams both picked up wins Monday against the Jackson Center Tigers.
The Tribe boys won 80-38, and the girls defeated the Tigers 73-44.
Travis Sutter and Cole Hull both won individual events for the FRHS boys. Sutter took first in the 1,600- and 3,200-meter races, while Hull won the 100 dash and long jump.
Adam Byram (110 hurdles), Isaac Siegrist (400 dash), Sam Huelskamp (300 hurdles), Dylan Weagant (200 dash), Matthew Kuess (discus) and Tyler Acheson (shot put) also won events for the Indians.
Andrew Stocker, Hull, Weagant and Acheson teamed to win the 4x100 relay as well.
Alexis Hobbs had her hand in three wins for the Tribe girls. She won both the 100 and 300 hurdles, and ran the first leg of the winning 4x400 relay. She joined Angela Heitkamp, Caitlyn Huelskamp and Paige Hemmert to win the relay.
Rachel Kaup (800 run), Grace Gehle (3,200 run), Kristen Keller (shot put), Huelskamp (1,600) and Heitkamp (400) also earned victories.

SA loses big
BERNE — Walks and errors proved costly for the South Adams baseball team as it dropped its home opener Monday 27-4 in five innings to the Norwell Knights.
South Adams (0-1) trailed 2-1 after the first inning, but the 2014 sectional champion Knights struck for a baker’s dozen in the second inning to break the game open.
Norwell added one run in the third before scoring 10 more in the fourth for a 26-1 advantage.
South Adams committed 10 errors and Norwell drew 11 walks as only nine of its 27 runs were earned.
Jaden Dull and Skylar Schoch both had doubles for the Starfires, who also got hits from Justin Nussbaum and Chandler Ingle.
Ingle took the loss on the mound for South Adams, allowing 11 runs — six earned — while giving up four hits and walking five.

FR softball falls
ARCANUM, Ohio — Fort Recovery’s softball team fell to 0-2 on the season with a 16-7 loss Monday to Franklin Monroe.
Haley Knapke led the Tribe as she went 1-for-4 at the plate with a single and three RBIs. Kasey Vogel also had a hit for Fort Recovery.
Audra Metzger, Whitney Will and Tori Vaughn all had two walks. Metzger tallied two RBIs, with MiKayla Post and Will each adding one.
Chelsea Timmerman took the loss in the circle, allowing 10 runs on eight hits in 3 2/3 innings. She also struck out a pair. Devin Post struck out two and gave up six runs in 3 1/3 innings of relief.