UNION CITY – The Tri-County North softball team rode the arm of senior pitcher Kasidi Daugherty, who threw a complete one-hit game to lead the Panthers to a 4-0 win over Mississinawa Valley in WOAC action.
It was senior night recognition at Mississinawa prior to the game, where the Blackhawks acknowledged visiting Panther seniors Kasidi Daugherty, Kora Lykins, and Gracie Hemp.
Mississinawa then presented and recognized their seniors, Caeden Fritz and Stephany De La Torre.
The game featured two of the league’s top pitchers, Kasidi Daugherty and sophomore Ella Godfrey.
But it was Daugherty getting the best of the dual, throwing 13 strikeouts with just one walk and one hit for the complete game shutout win.
Godfrey threw 10 strikeouts for the Hawks, but also gave up four walks, seven hits, and two earned runs in the 4-0 loss.
With one out at the top of the 2nd inning, Jordan Pinion knocked a base hit, then back-to-back walks from Godfrey loaded the bases for senior Gracie Hemp. Hemp lined a hit to left field to plate Pinion to dent the scoreboard 1-0.
In the top of the 3rd inning, leadoff hitter Bella Cherry reached on an error. Cherry scored on a hit from Kora Lykins and throwing error, which advanced Lykins to 2nd base.
A base hit by Lola Grieshop scored courtesy runner Alyssa Arnett to make the score 3-0.
The Panthers added one more run in the top of the 4th inning with Bella Cherry again scoring on a bunt from Lykins and a throwing error, allowing her to get home, and closed out the game scoring at 4-0.
Tri-County North went on to claim the win improving their league record to 6-1 overall and still in the hunt of a league title a game behind Tri-Village.
After the game, Tri-County North coach Shelly Lykins talked about her ace pitcher, Kasidi Daugherty and the season she’s having.
“Yeah, she’s shooting for 500 career strikeouts. She hit her 300th career strikeout when the season first started and has passed 400 and I’m going to pitch her every game until she can’t pitch any more basically, that’s what she wants to do, and we want as well,” exclaimed Lykins.
A great pitcher in softball is a foundation of a good team … but you also need to have run production and it’s something the Panthers have gotten better as the season rolls along.
“So, we’re hitting better as a team, where we were relied on Kasidi a lot more last year to get us wins, but this year, at least, we’re hitting the ball and scoring more by putting the ball in play,” Lykins added.
That’s paying off for North, who at the mid-point in the year was 4-7 after taking a 4-0 loss at Tri-Village. In those first 11 games they scored 49 runs … but in the last 7 games won they have scored 65.
Coach Lykins talked about the early part of the season and the schedule, which has put them in a position to be competitive.
“We started off the year with National Trail and Milton Union and did a nice job against both,” Lykins said.
“But we kind of got our butts handed to us when we went to Kentucky and saw some really good teams. We played the number one team in Maryland, and then the number five and four teams in Kentucky, and lost 11-1, 11-1, and 12-2. Then lost 6-5 to Lawrence County and picked up an 8-6 win in the last game against Knox County,”
“So, we got better, I honestly think that’s what’s made our season so good, is because we went there and had to play hard and saw really good pitching, and I think it helps when you get back home,” coach Lykins explained.
Tri-County North still has an outside shot in the WOAC race with some big games coming up next week at 6-1 in the conference with four games left.
They still have Newton (15-3, 3-2), Dixie (4-10, 1-4) and then a big one with Arcanum (14-6, 7-1) at North on May 6th and at Ansonia (7-8, 3-2) on May 8th.
Mississinawa Valley dropped to 7-10, 4-5 in the WOAC and they have league games left at Preble Shawnee (6-8, 3-3) on May 6th and at Dixie on May 8th.
