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MIDDLEBURY — When Addie Reid gets on base for the Elkhart softball team, good things usually happen.
Wednesday night in the Class 4A Northridge Sectional semifinals, Reid put on a clinic for leadoff hitters, scoring four runs and starting three different rallies, as Elkhart pulled away from Concord for a 12-4 victory.
The Lions, now 21-7, will face the host Raiders (13-10) at 6 p.m. Friday as they try to defend their sectional title. Northridge advanced Wednesday by beating Goshen, 15-0.
Reid, who is now hitting over .500 on the year, was a pest from the start of the game, reaching on a walk to open the contest, stealing second and coming home on a groundout to give Elkhart a quick 1-0 lead.
"That is our style of play,'' Elkhart coach Matt Walker said. "When Addie gets on, she can run, we can then bunt her over and we have three really good girls hitting three, four and five. We love putting pressure on the defense and scoring first.''
Elkhart led 3-1 starting the bottom of the third, when Concord's bats got rolling against Lions starter Ava Sanders.
Concord loaded the bases on a single by Kendall Hodge, a walk and an error. Sophomore catcher Laela Moore then drove in two runs with a single and Cheyenne Collins gave Concord the lead with another single to make it 4-3.
Walker then brought in Anna Knight to pitch and the senior got out of the inning on a grounder and a strikeout.
"You go into the fifth inning leading and you start to feel good,'' Concord coach Brent Bardo said. "But we knew Elkhart can strike quickly and their top of the order is just so tough to keep off base.''
Unfortunately for the Minutemen, the top of the fifth inning saw Reid leading off and the sophomore promptly singled and stole second.
Two hit by pitches followed — the first a little controversial as it looked like Natalie Smith bunted at the ball.
But with the bases loaded, junior Ava Walker singled off the glove of Hodge at shortstop to score two and give Elkhart the lead for good. When senior catcher Bailey Harris-Rogers followed with a two-run double it was 7-4.
Freshman Riley Smith's single drove in the final run of the inning to make it 8-4.
The inning could have been worse for Concord, but freshman pitcher Taelynn McKinney left the bases loaded by striking out Reid and Smith.
The Lions added two runs in the sixth on a single by Fiona Topolski and a sacrifice fly off the bat of Knight.
A two-run single by Sanders — which gave her five RBIs on the night — gave Elkhart the final 12-4 margin.
Meanwhile, Knight was taking care of business in the circle, allowing no runs in her four-plus innings of work to pick up the victory in releif.
"In the last three-fourths of the year, Anna has shown a lot of confidence and really thrown the ball great,'' Matt Walker said. "She hits her spots and lets our defense make the play behind her. I thought she was great tonight.''
Concord had two runners on base in each of the final three innings against Knight, but were unable to score.
The sixth inning ended when Hodge collided hard with Ava Walker at shortstop and was called out for interference. Both players were down for a short time, but remained in the game.
Concord closes its season at 11-17 and will graduate five senior starters. However, McKinney, Moore and Lisbeth Flores are among the key returnees for the Minutemen.
"I'm really proud of the way my kids fought to the end tonight,'' Bardo said. "There have been times when we are down like that and you see kids hang their heads. But tonight, the girls were into it right to the end.''
Ava Walker led the Lions with three hits, while Sanders. Reid and Topolski all had two.
Moore and Collins each had three hits for Concord.
NORTHRIDGE 15, GOSHEN 0
Sophomore Leighla Winchester tossed a one-hitter to lead the Raiders past Goshen and into the sectional championship game.
The Raiders had 15 hits in the game, including three each by Mia Branam and Willow Staley.
Tabby Lucas added a double and triple for coach Andrew Robinson's team.
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NORTHRIDGE SECTIONALELKHART 12, CONCORD 4
Elkhart;111;052;2;—;12;12;3
Concord;013;000;0;—;4;9;2
Ava Sanders, Anna Knight (3, W); Taelynn McKinney (L).
Elkhart: Hits: Ava Walkher 3, Sanders 2, Addie Reid 2, Fiona Topolski 2. 3B: Topolski. 2B: Walker, Bailey Harris-Rogers. RBI: Sanders 5, Harris-Rogers 2. Runs: Reid 4. SB: Walker 2, Reid 2.
Concord: Hits: Laela Moore 3, Cheyenne Collins 3. RBI: Moore 2.
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Wednesday night in the Class 4A Northridge Sectional semifinals, Reid put on a clinic for leadoff hitters, scoring four runs and starting three different rallies, as Elkhart pulled away from Concord for a 12-4 victory.
The Lions, now 21-7, will face the host Raiders (13-10) at 6 p.m. Friday as they try to defend their sectional title. Northridge advanced Wednesday by beating Goshen, 15-0.
Reid, who is now hitting over .500 on the year, was a pest from the start of the game, reaching on a walk to open the contest, stealing second and coming home on a groundout to give Elkhart a quick 1-0 lead.
"That is our style of play,'' Elkhart coach Matt Walker said. "When Addie gets on, she can run, we can then bunt her over and we have three really good girls hitting three, four and five. We love putting pressure on the defense and scoring first.''
Elkhart led 3-1 starting the bottom of the third, when Concord's bats got rolling against Lions starter Ava Sanders.
Concord loaded the bases on a single by Kendall Hodge, a walk and an error. Sophomore catcher Laela Moore then drove in two runs with a single and Cheyenne Collins gave Concord the lead with another single to make it 4-3.
Walker then brought in Anna Knight to pitch and the senior got out of the inning on a grounder and a strikeout.
"You go into the fifth inning leading and you start to feel good,'' Concord coach Brent Bardo said. "But we knew Elkhart can strike quickly and their top of the order is just so tough to keep off base.''
Unfortunately for the Minutemen, the top of the fifth inning saw Reid leading off and the sophomore promptly singled and stole second.
Two hit by pitches followed — the first a little controversial as it looked like Natalie Smith bunted at the ball.
But with the bases loaded, junior Ava Walker singled off the glove of Hodge at shortstop to score two and give Elkhart the lead for good. When senior catcher Bailey Harris-Rogers followed with a two-run double it was 7-4.
Freshman Riley Smith's single drove in the final run of the inning to make it 8-4.
The inning could have been worse for Concord, but freshman pitcher Taelynn McKinney left the bases loaded by striking out Reid and Smith.
The Lions added two runs in the sixth on a single by Fiona Topolski and a sacrifice fly off the bat of Knight.
A two-run single by Sanders — which gave her five RBIs on the night — gave Elkhart the final 12-4 margin.
Meanwhile, Knight was taking care of business in the circle, allowing no runs in her four-plus innings of work to pick up the victory in releif.
"In the last three-fourths of the year, Anna has shown a lot of confidence and really thrown the ball great,'' Matt Walker said. "She hits her spots and lets our defense make the play behind her. I thought she was great tonight.''
Concord had two runners on base in each of the final three innings against Knight, but were unable to score.
The sixth inning ended when Hodge collided hard with Ava Walker at shortstop and was called out for interference. Both players were down for a short time, but remained in the game.
Concord closes its season at 11-17 and will graduate five senior starters. However, McKinney, Moore and Lisbeth Flores are among the key returnees for the Minutemen.
"I'm really proud of the way my kids fought to the end tonight,'' Bardo said. "There have been times when we are down like that and you see kids hang their heads. But tonight, the girls were into it right to the end.''
Ava Walker led the Lions with three hits, while Sanders. Reid and Topolski all had two.
Moore and Collins each had three hits for Concord.
NORTHRIDGE 15, GOSHEN 0
Sophomore Leighla Winchester tossed a one-hitter to lead the Raiders past Goshen and into the sectional championship game.
The Raiders had 15 hits in the game, including three each by Mia Branam and Willow Staley.
Tabby Lucas added a double and triple for coach Andrew Robinson's team.
------------
NORTHRIDGE SECTIONALELKHART 12, CONCORD 4
Elkhart;111;052;2;—;12;12;3
Concord;013;000;0;—;4;9;2
Ava Sanders, Anna Knight (3, W); Taelynn McKinney (L).
Elkhart: Hits: Ava Walkher 3, Sanders 2, Addie Reid 2, Fiona Topolski 2. 3B: Topolski. 2B: Walker, Bailey Harris-Rogers. RBI: Sanders 5, Harris-Rogers 2. Runs: Reid 4. SB: Walker 2, Reid 2.
Concord: Hits: Laela Moore 3, Cheyenne Collins 3. RBI: Moore 2.
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