New Palestine's flawless fielding highlights semifinal rout: 'Everyone was spectacular'

PENDLETON — Courtney Study hedged. And who could blame her? Shortly after shutting out Pendleton Heights on four hits in the Class 4A Sectional 9 semifinal Wednesday night, the senior hurler was asked which of her teammates' web gems was her favorite.

"Oh my gosh. I can't pick one. I seriously cannot," Study beamed following the Dragons' 9-0 victory. "Maddie (Engle) with the on-the-fence pop-fly out, Syd O. (right fielder Sydney Oliver) had a diving catch, Maddie had a diving catch, Hirsch (first baseman Katie Hirschy) had a double play. And then (Allie Blum) comes out of nowhere on up-the-middle hits and gets the ball. I don't know. I'm going to give all the credit to the defense. They killed it."

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Yep, that about covers it — though there was also a whacky first-inning double play initiated by a beautiful throw from Oliver, who also made a running catch near the wall in right to end the fifth, a less-flashy but still impressive play by third baseman Paige Ernstes in the third and a running catch in shallow center to end it by Blum.

Pendleton Heights was putting the ball in play — it only struck out four times — but virtually every hit was either right at a fielder or quickly tracked down before the runner could reach. "If that's not the best game they've played this year, I'd have to see it, because they were spot-on all night long," Pendleton Heights coach Rob Davis said.

"Everyone talks about our offense, but we've always had good defense," Hirschy said, echoing coach Ed Marcum's postgame message.

Indeed, the Dragons' lineup is loaded. Littered with Division I commits, they're batting a collective .380 with 45 home runs, 59 doubles, 243 RBIs and 260 runs scored over 26 games. There are no easy outs from 1-9 — five had multiple hits vs. PH led by Oliver, Hirschy and Engle, who also tallied three RBIs apiece — but it's New Pal's defense that's taken it to another level this season, boasting a .981 fielding percentage with 12 double plays and only 12 errors on 636 chances.

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Its latest outing was a demonstration of the two working hand-in-hand.

Jersi Gross initiated a first-inning rally with a lead-off double, then came around to score on an Oliver base hit. One batter later, Engle launched a two-out, two-strike pitch over the left field wall for a three-run homer that staked her side to an early 4-0 lead.

Study was wobbly to start the bottom of the first, walking two and hitting another to load the bases with no outs. But the defense picked her up. Oliver fielded a fly ball to right and launched a perfect throw to the plate. As the lead runner retreated to third, catcher Reese Rosenbaum noticed the runner on second trying to tag up, so she threw down to Blum, who tagged the runner as she dove into third to complete the double play.

"The sun was so bright I couldn't see where the ball ended up going," Oliver said. "Next thing I know, Reese is throwing to Allie and she caught her for the double play."

It was a massive, game-altering sequence, denying Pendleton another chance to potentially tie the game with the bases loaded. "That really helped my nerves calm down," Study said. "Syd did amazing."

Study was steady from there. She carried a no-hitter into the third (that inning ended with Blum making a diving play up the middle and reaching over to tag second base), issued only one more walk (none after the second) and did not allow another runner into scoring position.

"Courtney's done that to us several times this year where she has some first-inning jitters, but once she gets through the first she settles down, comes out and pitches a great game," Marcum said.

"A lot of that (tonight) was because of our defense," he continued. "That was as good of a defensive game as we've played all year. Everyone was just spectacular."

End of an era for Pendleton Heights

Wednesday's loss marked the end of a decorated four-year run for Pendleton Heights' eight-girl senior class.

Skylar Baldwin, Shelby Messer, Katelin Goodwin, Kiah Hubble, Alana Smith, Morgan Humble, Kelsey Day and Addie Nichols won 86 games over the past four seasons, with back-to-back 25-win campaigns that culminated with the program's first regional championships since 2013.

"They've been a special group," Davis said.

"They competed, they got along — it was like a family," he continued. "There was no bickering. They understood their roles, and that's the hardest thing is to get people to accept their roles. They all come from travel ball and all think they should play, but these girls understood that they might be a pinch hitter or DP or just a defensive player and they accepted that. And when you do that, you get what we got. They were a very coachable group."

Greenfield-Central avenges regular-season loss to Mt. Vernon

Kristen Wineinger and Leilani Forshey both had two hits (one homer) and three RBIs, and Savvanna Riall, Allison Hornaday and Makenna Rankins all contributed two hits to help Greenfield-Central secure a 7-5 win over Mt. Vernon in Wednesday's first Sectional 9 semifinal.

Forshey's 13th homer of the season came amidst a four-run first inning, while Wineinger's solo shot broke a 4-all stalemate in the second.

Pitcher Madysen Herbert settled in after a four-run first inning, fanning eight over 5.1 innings pitched to secure the win. Freshman Addi Heacox recorded the final five outs to pick up the save with no runs on one hit and two strikeouts.

"Oh my gosh, she was so good," Wineinger said of Heacox. "She was getting the lead-off out and setting the tone. She was hitting her spots; getting that outside corner."

"I love Addi. She's been a great addition," Riall added. "Our freshmen pitchers have really been doing a lot for us. Madysen did great tonight, too."

Mt. Vernon's Shelby Rakosky capped her decorated career with a 4-for-4 performance that included a couple runs scored, Mikayla Oger posted two hits and Emma Jenkins homered and collected three RBIs. Graci Hines struck out seven and did not allow a run after the third inning.

Follow Brian Haenchen on Twitter at @Brian_Haenchen.

This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: IHSAA softball: New Palestine tops Pendleton Heights in sectional semis