SYCAMORE (Crawford County Now) — It took a month, but the two teams are finally going to meet.

Mohawk was scheduled to visit Monroeville on May 8 for a non-league softball game. But the weather had other ideas, so the game was canceled and never made up.

Now the Lady Warriors (25-5) face the Eagles (26-3) on a much bigger stage: The Division VII state semifinals at Akron’s Firestone Stadium Wednesday at 3 p.m.

“Obviously we are looking at a great team. They were state runner-up in Division IV last year,” head coach Mindy Walton said.

“We will face a lefty pitcher in Veanna Helmstetter. She was right up there with Aubrey (Gottfried) and Kendra Waldron (Ayersville) in our district voting.”

PREPARATION

“The approach at the plate will be much similar to Friday, lay off the rise (ball) and sit back on the change-up. I feel pretty confident in our line-up at this point,” she said.

Mohawk got there with a 7-1 win over Defiance Ayersville Friday, while Monroeville topped Vienna Mathews 9-1 in regional finals.

Both are highly ranked as Mohawk was fifth and Monroeville eighth in the final Division VII Ohio Fastpitch Softball Coaches Association poll. The poll champion was Bowerston Conotton Valley (23-2).

Coming back from a deficit has not been a problem for Mohawk, which has shown resilience rallying in two post-season games.

“Surprisingly, they focus on other things, and the ‘big’ game doesn’t seem to faze them. They focus on each game individually and how they are going to win it,” Walton said.

Team chemistry has been a key component.

“They play with love for each other, and I feel like when we are out there, no one else is around. We lock in to the task at hand. They say many times, ‘This is just another game,'” Walton said.

BY THE NUMBERS

It’s been a record setting year for the Lady Warriors, starting with Gottfried’s 323 strikeouts and 1.74 earned run average in 177 innings pitched.

She gave up just four hits to Ayersville after Hilltop touched her up for seven in the two regional contests. She had a combined 21 strikeouts in those outings.

Gottfried had three hits in the regional final. At the plate, the sophomore is hitting .457, one of four Mohawk hitters above the .400 mark.

But she’s not alone in swinging a big bat.

“We’ve faced some great pitching the last few weeks and have hit very well 1-9. That’s what we need to be doing at this point of the season,” Walton said.

Mallory Brickner (.438, 46 RBI), Katie Woodland (.471 and 49 RBI with 11 HR) and Emily Brickner (.452, 28 RBI and 12 stolen bases) provide plenty of firepower in the 1-4 spots.

Freshman Blake Miller (.362) and seniors Trenna Johnson, Allison Russell, Anna Russell and Avery Barth have all contributed in the tourney run. Barth has 13 sacrifices and Anna Russell 11.

As a team Mohawk has outscored its opponents, 314-68 and has a .369 team batting average.

RETURN TRIP

Head coach Abe Helmstetter’s squad is accustomed to success and venue. Last season, Monroeville made it to the championship game, falling to No. 1 Strasburg-Franklin, 10-0.

Other than the three seniors, it’s a young team.

“We needed to focus on execution over expectations,” he told the Norwalk Reflector.

“Last year, we had to kick the door open, and it was exciting. This year there was a different expectation, and I credit these girls for their work ethic, attitudes and desire to get back here.”

The Eagles are led by senior second baseman Taryn Tyler’s .576 batting average and 54 RBI. Teammate catcher Avery Rosser carries a .483 BA with 31 RBI and eight doubles.

Junior Madison Reiber has knocked in 50 runs and has three home runs.

Ace Veanna Helmstetter leads pitching. She is 22-1 with 161 strikeouts and 21 walks in 129 and 2/3 innings pitched.

In the regional victory Helmstetter stuck out eight and walked one batter. Tyler and junior Rachel Fries each had two hits, while Reiber drove in three runs.

“They have some great hitters in Taryn Tyler and Avery Rosser and so do we,” Walton noted. “I feel like our teams are very well matched up and it should be a great battle to see who gets the win.”

This senior trio has been a part of a plethora of victories.

Entering last week, the Eagles were 91-22 in the four seasons that Helmstetter, Rosser and Tyler have been in uniform.

Helmstetter is in his 14th season at the helm of Monroeville.

“Taryn has done a great job and is someone we just rely on in the heart of our lineup,” he said. “And when Veanna is on in the circle, it starts there for us. And Avery has caught every pitch of every game this year.”

The team’s batting average is .394 and the Eagles average 11 runs per game.

TOURNEY NOTES

  • Mohawk is listed as the away team.
  • In the other semifinal game Covington (21-9) takes on Portsmouth Notre Dame (26-3) Wednesday at 5:30 p.m. The winners play for the state title on Thursday at 5:30 p.m.
  • Historic Firestone Stadium, which is celebrating its 100th anniversary, will host all 21 games of the state tournament Wednesday through Sunday.
  • It has a seating capacity of 4,576, with a combination of wooden bench seating, bleacher sections and some box seats. · Tickets are available at www.OHSAA.org/tickets.
  • Live broadcasts, live stats and more state tournament coverage is available at: https://www.ohsaa.org/Sports-Tournaments/Softball/2025-Softball/2025-Softball-State-Tournament-Coverage