Ethel’s fast-pitch softball team wrapped up the Region 5-1A regular-season championship last week while also piling up three victories.
The Lady Tigers ventured to Independence on Tuesday and came home with a 9-0 win. On Thursday, they traveled to Ray Brooks and came away with a division sweep – winning 15-1 and 18-4.
Ethel improved to 14-6 with last week’s three wins and was scheduled to wrap up the regular season on Monday this week with a contest against Sebastopol.
The Lady Tigers will then be off until next week, as the Region 5-1A winner gets a bye in the first round of the MHSAA Class 1A state playoffs. Round 1 is set for Friday-Saturday this week, with the second round currently scheduled for Tuesday (April 24) and Thursday (April 26) next week. That is when the Lady Tigers will face a yet-to-be-determined opponent in a best-of-three series.
Last Tuesday at Independence, Jessica Mitchell fanned five and allowed just two hits as the Lady Tigers blanked the hosts.
Mitchell also had a single, double, two runs and an RBI while Sidney Rone doubled, tripled, scored three runs and drove in one to lead Ethel.
Jessica Mitchell and Shelby Schuster both singled and scored, while Madison Odom and Brooklyn Pitt both scored.
In the first game Thursday at Ray Brooks, Schuster scattered five hits and struck out four to get the win in the circle. Her teammates backed her with seven runs in the first inning and six in the fourth.
Rone homered, singled and scored twice and Aubrianna McBride homered, singled, drove in three runs and scored three times to lead Ethel.
Pitt, Schuster and Emily Mitchell all had a single and a double. Pitt drove in two and scored twice, while Schuster also scored twice.
Melissa Jones singled and drove in three runs, while Haley Wiegel, Jaidyn Sims and Amiracle Edwards all had one hit and two runs scored.
In the second game, Ethel scored seven times in the first inning, three in the second and six in the third to take control.
Schuster threw three innings in relief of Kambrie Hodges to get the win. They combined to strike out 12 Ray Brooks hitters and allow just two hits.
Rone hit for the cycle, going 4-for-4 with a homer, triple, double and single. She drove in five runs and scored four times.
Emily Mitchell tripled and singled twice, scoring two runs and driving in one while Edwards had two doubles, four RBIs and a run scored for Ethel.
Jessica Mitchell doubled, scored and had one RBI; Pitt singled, scored twice and had one RBI; Wiegel singled and scored; Hodges singled and scored twice; McBride scored twice and had one RBI; Breanna Blaine scored three runs for the Lady Tigers.
