Bluffton golfers beat Eastbrook
Bluffton’s boys’ golf team edged Eastbrook 171-173 in Thursday’s home match.
Keegan Schwartz shot a 37 on Timber Ridge Golf Course’s back 9 to lead the Tigers and finish as medalist.
Following Schwartz on Bluffton were Ephraim Frauhiger at 39, Alec Reiff at 46, Connor Klopfenstein at 49, and Kade Abbett at 50.
Aaron Fulda and Andrew Jarck each shot a 41 to lead Eastbrook.
In a Bluffton JV intra-squad match, Anthony Hartman shot a 51 for the best score. He was followed by Draven Dull at 53, Chase Gibson at 58, Kyler Potter and Ethan Hunt each at 59, Logan Shearrer and Hudson Werich each at 64, and Logan Reifsteck at 69.
Bluffton tees off again on Saturday in the ACAC Invitational.
Norwell softball defeats North Side
Norwell’s softball team defeated North Side 11-1 in Thursday’s home game in five innings.
The Lady Knights (12-8) took a commanding lead early with four runs in the first inning and five more in the second. They added one more run in the third and another in the fourth to win the game by the 10-run rule.
Norwell had 11 hits at the plate, including three home runs.
Allyson Burtron led the charge, going 3-for-3 with a home run and triple, three RBIs, and two runs. Hannah Troyer followed, going 2-for-3 with a home run, two RBIs, and one run.
Brielle Nunley went 1-for-3 with a home run, two RBIs, and one run.
Emma Bailey and Kirtlynn Lemler each finished with multi-hit games. Bailey went 2-for-2 with a triple and two runs while Lemler went 2-for-3 with a double and two RBIs.
Nunley was the winning pitcher, allowing two hits and one unearned run in four innings while striking out four. Madyson Sonnigsen came in for the final inning and allowed not hits and got two strikeouts.
Norwell returns to the field on Saturday at Whitko.
SW baseball wins at Randolph Southern
A big seventh-inning by Southern Wells’ baseball team led it to a 6-4 win at Randolph Southern on Thursday.
The Raiders (5-13) trailed 4-1 after six innings, but exploded for five runs in the top of the seventh to take the lead and eventually the game.
The Raiders had seven hits at the plate. Evan Reynolds led the bats, going 3-for-4 with two doubles, three RBIs, and a run. Owen Vickrey added a solo home run.
Vickrey was also the winning pitcher, throwing three scoreless and hitless innings while striking out three and walking one.
Reynolds came in for the final inning to get the save, allowing no hits or runs and striking out two.
Branson Rheinhart started and pitched three innings, allowing four runs on two hits while walking four and striking out two.
The Raiders play their next game at Whitko on Friday.
Norwell JV softball team tops Woodlan
Norwell’s JV softball team beat Woodlan 18-8 in six innings in Thursday’s game.
Norwell started hot with six runs in the first and five more in the second.
The Lady Knights added one run each over the next three innings before putting up four more in the sixth to win the game by the 10-run rule.
Norwell had 17 hits at the plate, with Nevada Lenwell leading the way with four. Leah Werling and Kaydance Clark each had three hits, and Teagan Lesley added two.
Kailey Eccles was the winning pitcher, allowing six runs (five earned) on eight hits in two innings while striking out one and walking one.
NHS boys’ golf loses to Columbia City
Norwell’s boys’ golf team fell 150-170 to Columbia City on Thursday.
Augie Mann shot a 38 to lead the Knight golfers. He was followed on the team by Ethan Ottinger at 43, Derek Smith at 44, and Kaden Graft and Daniel Simerman each at 45.
Sean Bledsoe shot a 35 to lead Columbia City and finish as medalist.
On Norwell’s JV, Davis Miller led the team with a 47. Following him were Bodie Zimmer and Luke Herrell each at 48, Josh Adam at 49, Chase Hulvey at 52, Owen Wallis at 54, and Zach Herrell at 58.
The Knights will be back in action on Saturday at Cobblestone for the NE8 meet.
Tiger softball gets win over Winchester
Bluffton’s softball team defeated Winchester 12-11 in walk-off fashion on Thursday.
The Lady Tigers (5-16) had led 10-8 after five innings, but a three-run sixth by Winchester put them out in front 11-10.
With one out in the bottom of the seventh, Tyrah Shaw came up with the game-winning hit for Bluffton for its third straight home victory.
Averi Petty pitched a complete game on the mound for Bluffton to get the win. She also had three hits at the plate, including two triples, and four RBIs. Tressa Renner and Claire Craighead each had two hits and two RBIs, and Isabella Stout added two hits as well.
The win concluded the regular season for Bluffton. It will now enter sectional play at Eastside on Tuesday against Bishop Luers.
