SHELBY (Crawford County Now) — Colonel Crawford has a long history of success on the softball diamond.

After a few years of absence from the district tournament, the Lady Eagles are looking to reestablish themselves among the elites.

Colonel Crawford succeeded in its first appearance in a district tournament in four years with a hard fought 9-3 win over New London at the Division VI district tournament at Shelby Tuesday afternoon.

The Eagles will face the winner of overall No. 1 district seed Ada and Carey. That game is on Thursday at 5 p.m. at Lima Bath.

Solid defense, timely hitting along with a strong pitching from Aubrey Betts turned the trick.

“It feels good,” Colonel Crawford coach Ethan Weithman said of the win. “These girls that are seniors have never had the opportunity to be here. I’m super happy for these girls.”

Sophomore catcher Olivia Friley led the charge at the plate for the Eagles with a home run, a triple, three runs scored and four batted in.

“Their catcher is a stud,” New London coach Joe Thomas said. “She works her butt off back there and a good leadoff hitter too.”

The Colonel Crawford defense did its thing, turning two double plays. The key on came in the top of the sixth. The Eagles led, 6-3, but the Wildcats loaded the bases with none out.

Peyton Pickering hit a line drive that Colonel Crawford (20-8) shortstop Adalyn Bond backhanded for the out. She then tossed to third baseman Kinsley Hoepf to double off Natalie Weaver to quell the rally.

“Adalyn’s been tough at short all year,” Weithman said. “I think this entire year, she’s had four errors, maybe. That’s saying a lot coming from the outfield (last year) to the infield.”

New London (9-16) collected nine hits on the night, but the Eagles defense minimized the damage. While Betts only struck out two batters, she only walked one and let her defense do the rest.

“We came in knowing Colonel Crawford’s a solid team — great pitcher, really good hitters,” Thomas said. “They turned two double plays at crucial times. You take those plays away and it’s a lot closer game.”

The Eagles jumped out to a 3-0 lead with two runs in the first on two hits and a sacrifice fly by Betts — the first of five sacrifices for Colonel Crawford. The Eagles added one in the second on a hit, a walk, and a sac fly from Friley.

The Wildcats finally broke through with a pair of runs in the fourth on four straight one-out hits. The big blow was a two-run double by Weaver.

From there, the CC bats heated up, and the defense held New London at bay.

“I tell all the girls, the first time through (the lineup), you have to make adjustments,” Weithman said. “If you keep letting (the pitcher) do what she wants, she’s going to keep striking you out or hitting it off the handle or the end of the bat. You have to change what you’re doing to change what she’s doing.”

Addison Yetter went the distance for the Wildcats, striking out four and walking four. Seven of the nine New London batters hit safely. Gracie Thomas and Olivia Yetter had two hits, and Weaver’s double was the only extra base hit.

“I tip my cap to them,” Thomas said of the Eagles. “Defensively they did a great job. Their pitcher — she’s a great pitcher — but we hit her. I’m super proud of our girls.”

Friley, Kinsley Hoepf, and Bella Stratton each had two hits for Colonel Crawford. Bond and Betts had the other two hits and each drove in a run.

“For the most part, all year long, we’ve been solid defensively,” Weithman said. “I think the last couple games we lost were errors and baserunning mistakes. If we come out here and don’t make many mistakes, we’re OK.”

Thomas will say goodbye to four seniors — his daughter, Gracie, Olivia Yetter, Hailie Plyant, and Pailie Wilson.

“These seniors mean more to me than a lot,” Thomas said. “My daughter’s on the team. I’ve coached the other three since they’ve been in 8U. It’s a special group of girls for me.”

Box score

New London             000 210 0         3        9       2

Colonel Crawford    210 303 X         9        8       1

WP: Aubrey Betts (2 SO, 1 W)

LP: Addison Yetter (4 SO, 4 W)

HR: (CC) Olivia Friley (2-run, 6th inning).

Triples: (CC) Olivia Friley.

Doubles: (CC) Kinsley Hoepf.

Multiple hits: (NL) Gracie Thomas, Olivia Yetter; (CC) Olivia Friley, Kinsley Hoepf, Bella Stratton.

Records: New London 9-16; Colonel Crawford 20-8.

Next: New London season over; Colonel Crawford vs. Ada/Carey winner, Division VI district final at Shelby, Friday.