Delphi softball brings the noise in repeat run to sectional championship

DELPHI — Loud dugouts, loud bats and a commanding arm in the circle.

However it chooses, Delphi softball can make its presence felt in a myriad of ways.

On Wednesday, the Oracles checked all three boxes when they shut out county rival Carroll 5-0 to repeat as Class 2A, Sectional 38 champion.

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The road to repeat started with setting the tone from an energy standpoint after senior Lacey Pickering and her fellow returnees from last season recalled a memory from their regional play.

“The Carroll coach called Lewis Cass for regionals and basically told him, ‘Their dugout was so loud we couldn't handle it,'" Pickering said. "We knew coming in that Carroll didn’t like a loud dugout so trying to be louder than the other team to where they can't do what they want to do and get in their routine. It really helps us because it made our girls hyped and involved."

That energy was on full display not just in the title game but through the final leg of Delphi's 2024 campaign.

The Oracles (17-8) entered the sectional winning six of their final seven regular season games.

Riding on the coattails of a 17-4 semifinal victory over Tipton, a game in which Delphi compiled 12 runs in the fourth and fifth innings, the Oracles knew their bats would come alive when they needed them most.

“It seems like it comes in spurts but tonight what I was impressed with is some of our girls, especially the younger girls, they executed and had some nice hits against some quality pitching,” Delphi coach Mark Schock said.

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Delphi compiled 12 hits and five runs in the fifth and sixth innings combined on Wednesday while holding the opposition to three.

But for as important as setting the tone in the dugout and the batter’s box may have been, what has been the key to success all season has been Delphi's defense, led by senior pitcher Lexi Miller.

Miller, who led the night with 14 strikeouts, is coming off of a week prior in which she notched her 1,000th career strikeout.

To follow it up with another sectional championship has made for a special two-week span.

“It’s just been amazing,” Miller said. “I’ve been super proud of our team all season and to go back to back is just great.”

Miller also touched on the influx of talent that has stepped into the roles vacated by last season’s graduating class and made Delphi's defense all the more resilient.

“They’ve been great. Them not being starters last year and being on the bench, it’s just been great to have them come in and step up when their number has been called,” Miller said.

Three sophomores and one junior have filled the holes left behind last season and throughout this year have provided them with ample moments of growth and learning says sophomore outfielder Abby Pearson.

“I’ve learned so much," sophomore outfielder Abby Pearson said. "This team has been like my family and both years, I’ve learned a ton and the last outfielders taught me everything I needed to know to be able to step in and be successful."

While sophomore Mady Anderson says that she and her fellow underclassmen playing a pivotal role in another sectional comes down to widespread belief.

“You just have to have confidence in yourself and all of your teammates,” Anderson said. “You know that if they can count on you, you can count on them.”

This article originally appeared on Lafayette Journal & Courier: Delphi softball defeats Carroll to repeat as sectional champion