SHELBY — The Wynford Royals have saved the best for last.
After falling short in their bid for a Northern 10 Athletic Conference title, the Royals have turned their energy to the postseason. The results have been impressive.
The most recent installment of tournament Wynford came Friday. The Royals dispatched Buckeye Central by the surprisingly easy score of 11-0 at the Division VI district championship game at Shelby.
The landmark victory netted Wynford its first ever district title in softball. The Royals will play in the regional semifinal on Wednesday at Findlay where they will meet Gibsonburg.
“We set out a goal from Day 1 last year to prove that Wynford had a purpose,” Royals coach Chelsea Rice said. “It might have taken us two years to get there, but we’re very young. I’m super happy about it.”
The differential was particularly stunning since the teams had been entwined in the league race and had split 3-2 decisions in their two N10 meetings.
So hot are the Royals in the tournament, they have not surrendered a run while outscoring three opponents in the sectional and district by a combined 40-0.
“They’re playing their best softball right now,” Buckeye Central coach Todd Messmer said. “And when they got upon us early, that’s hard to come back from when you’re playing against a good team, good pitching, good hitting.”
As the visiting team, Wynford (14-9) wasted no time in setting the tone. Lily Laipply hit the first pitch of the game for a double. Rylee Robinson walked and an out later, Briley Hildreth doubled them home.
With two outs, Kate McGuire doubled home Hildreth and came home on yet another double by Addison Sebring. The shellshocked Buckettes were down, 4-0, before their first at bat.
“The time they came to us, it was in seven (innings) and we won, 3-2,” Rice said. “Then it was nine innings, 3-2. The girls were actually glad that we were visitors because we got to attack first.”
The onslaught continued over the first three innings. The Royals added two in the second thanks to a two-run tater by Brooke Frombaugh and three more for good measure in the third with Laipply singling in one and Frombaugh adding a two-run double.
As it turned out, the first inning provided Robinson with more than enough cushion to victory in the circle. The junior struck out 13, walked four and scattered five hits.
“We knew it was going to be an uphill battle because they’ve got good pitching and we had to make good contact, which we did, but to all the wrong places,” Messmer said. “It’s hard to get any momentum back. They stole the momentum early and it’s just hard to recover from.”
The game was far from the pitchers’ battle many had anticipated. Buckeye Central’s Grace Collene and Robinson were No. 2 and No. 3 in the league behind Mohawk’s Aubrey Gottfried in earned run average, wins, and strikeouts.
“Grace’s pitches — her first pitch is her best pitch and Grace is a very, very good pitcher,” Rice said. “She deserves all the credit for herself. But the girls knew that. We’ve played them two times already in the league. We knew we had to jump on Grace’s first pitch.”
Though Buckeye Central (17-5) didn’t score, the Buckettes had nine baserunners with the combination of five hits and four walks, missing several opportunities.
“We did. We left (nine) runners stranded,” Messmer said. “We had opportunities to get them across. We just couldn’t get the timely hits when we needed them. That was the difference in the game.”
Collene gave up an uncharacteristic 13 hits. The senior righthander fanned 13 batters but also walked six and hit a batter.
Savannah Pace set the table for two of the Buckettes’ scoring chances. She had a one-out triple in the second and a double in the fourth following a walk to Leah Fields, putting runners at second and third with one out.
Each time, Robinson struck out the next two batters to squelch the threats.
Frombaugh and Hildreth ended with four RBIs each to lead the Royals’ offense. Hildreth and Sebring had three hits apiece.
Rice said it has taken the entire team to get where they are now.
“It’s a group effort,” Rice said. “If they’re in the dugout, if they’re in the field, all 14 of them, they matter.”
The scary part for the rest of the N10 is that Rice has no seniors and only four juniors.
Either team advancing was going to be of historic significance. While the Royals had never won a district, BC has only one title — in 1983 — and was last in the district championship game in 2008.
Messmer reflected on the rarefied air both teams experienced.
“We’re proud of the program. I think it’s been almost 40 years (42) since the last district (championship) for Buckeye Central,” Messmer said. “We’re really proud of what the girls did this year. We’re looking forward to next year.”
Messmer had to say goodbye to his seniors — Collene, Zoey Hoskins and Bailey Niese.
“Grace and Zoey and Bailey are all special seniors,” Messmer said. “I’ve had Grace for four years, Zoey for four years. Zoey started out as a first baseman and developed into our top catcher. Of course Grace, she was our starting pitcher as a freshman.”
Wynford still has unfinished business.
“They don’t want to stop swinging. They don’t want to stop playing defense,” Rice said of her squad. “We want to keep going all the way, as far as we can.”
Box score
Wynford 423 000 2 11 12 0
Buckeye Central 000 000 0 0 5 3
WP: Rylee Robinson (13 SO, 4 W)
LP: Grace Collene (12 SO, 6 W)
HR: (W) Brooke Frombaugh (2-run, 3rd inning).
Triples: (BC) Savannah Pace.
Doubles: (BC) Savannah Pace; (W) Addison Sebring 2, Lily Laipply, Brooke Frombaugh, Briley Hildreth.
Multiple hits: (BC) Grace Collene, Savannah Pace; (W) Briley Hildreth 3, Addison Sebring 3, Lily Laipply, Brooke Frombaugh.
Records: Wynford 14-9; Buckeye Central 17-6.
Next: Wynford vs. Gibsonburg, Division VI regional, Wednesday, at Findlay; Buckeye Central season over.