GREENVILLE—The Lady Wave earned its 25th win of the season by run-ruling the Oakwood Lady Lumberjacks in round two of OHSAA DII tournament play.
“Excited for the kids and the program,” said Greenville coach Jerrod Newland. “What a week for Greenville. Everybody’s thoughts and prayers for the travesty in town. Just breaks your heart, all the trees and park because those are generational, those are hundreds of years, 200 to 300 years, and the history. At least everybody is safe and the power is back on for most of us.”
“We’re excited for this softball opportunity, finishing this week at 25-4 and moving into next week, week 13 of the season,” Newland continued. “It’s Gold Medal Week and that’s what it’s all about.”
Zoey Burns and Liz Shaffer combined for a no-hitter to advance the Lady Wave in tournament play.
Greenville jumped out to a 3-0 first-inning lead with a Kylar Arnett double while taking advantage of a walk, a hit batsman, and a Lady Lumberjacks’ error.
The Lady Wave plated four runs in the bottom of the second using a walk, an Arnett single, a fielder’s choice, an Oakwood error, and a Haleigh McDermitt run-scoring single giving GHS a 7-0 lead.
Greenville made it a 9-0 advantage after three complete with a Lily Brubaker single, a hit batsman, an RBI single off the bat of Ella McLear, a walk, and a run-scoring fielder’s choice.
The game was halted due to heavy rains and picked up Friday with the teams playing scoreless ball in both the fourth and fifth innings before the Lady Wave pushed a run across in the bottom of the sixth with a McDermitt single and a walk-off run scoring Savannah Leach sacrifice fly to advance Greenville in tournament play.
The 2024 Greenville seniors notched their 110th Lady Wave victory, a 27.5 average wins per season, an impressive mark considering there are only 27 regular season games each year.
“Seniors 110 wins,” Newland said. “When you think of that in four years winning 110 games that is just unbelievable 27-28 wins a year and to do that for four straight years, they’re 110 and 17 that’s a heck of a winning percentage for four years with the schedule we have. Proud of them.”
The Friday night win gives the LWSB program 20 consecutive varsity seasons of 25 or more wins under the direction of Hall of Fame coach Jerrod Newland.
“I remember when we got to five, then seven, then we got to 10, then it was 15,” Newland said of the streak. “You never do that. Everybody has a bad year, is hurt, is banged up, or catches a bad group; you only play 27 of them. It’s kind of special. We surround ourselves with good people and great coaches, and that’s what it is all about – families and great coaches. Proud of what we have going, and it’s fun.”
“We just play for the name on the front and like today, a lot of kids playing doing some things,” added Newland. “When you get opportunities you make the most of them. All 22 of our kids are eligible to play, we can play them all and I have no qualms about any of them, it’s next person up mentality,”
Burns pitched 2.0 innings of scoreless no-hit ball with no walks while striking out four. Shaffer tossed 4.0 innings, allowing no run, no hits, two walks, and nine strikeouts.
Brubaker went 2-2 with a walk and 2 runs scored, Arnett was 2-3 including a double and 3 runs, McDermitt went 2-4, 1 RBI, 1 run, McLear was 1-3 with a walk and an RBI, Mahayla Cook a walk and 2 RBI, Addie Burke an RBI, and Leach and RBI.
The No. 1 seed Greenville Lady Wave hosts the No. 4 seed Clinton-Massie Lady Falcons on Tuesday, May 14 at Lady Wave Stadium with a third-round DII tournament game with a 5 p.m. start time.
“A great opportunity here this Tuesday,” Newland said. “Play Clinton Massie a storied program, a good rival we have here Tuesday to play, and the winner Tuesday moves to Final Friday, it’s Gold Medal Week.”
BOX SCORE
123 456 7 R H E
000 000 X 0 0 2 Oakwood
342 001 X 10 7 1 Greenville
“If kids need to hit or pitch, they find the time, and their families make it work and have the opportunities to get better, and that’s all we can ask as coaches,” Coach Newland said of LWSB’s continual success. “Kids take advantage of what their parents give them, the opportunities they have to get better; in our case, it’s softball. The Academy and GGSA are why Lady Wave Softball is amazing, and now we put in two middle school teams and the two fields at the school, and it’s just feeding the monster. I am so excited for the next few years of everything coming, and it’s fun, just fun.”
